


One Thousand Galleons

by KALA



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - No Voldemort, Bottom Severus Snape, Care of Magical Creatures Professor! Remus Lupin, Creature Fic, Everyone has their good and bad points in this fic, Fix-It, Get in losers, I promised a marauder's era fix-it and BEEP BEEP I'm here, M/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), Marauders Friendship (Harry Potter), Potions Professor! Severus Snape, Severus Snape Needs a Hug, Severus Snape is Draco Malfoy's Godparent, Top Remus Lupin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-15 17:54:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 30,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29440053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KALA/pseuds/KALA
Summary: It's been six years since Remus Lupin, age 25, left England after the death of his father and the slow dissolving of his friendship with the Marauders. A letter from James finds him in Canada at an opportune time, asking him to come home to meet his soon-to-be-born son.Remus never expected that his time away would give him the perfect resume for teaching at Hogwarts, nor did he expect that his return would spark both conflict and resolution. If only he could get the Potion's Professor to understand how sorry he is for the way things turned out.“What is the price for your forgiveness?”“One Thousand Galleons.”
Relationships: Remus Lupin/Severus Snape, background James Potter/Lily Evans Potter, background Lucius Malfoy/Narcissa Black Malfoy - Relationship
Comments: 139
Kudos: 153





	1. Over It

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: //banging pots and pans// BACK. ON. MY. BULLSHIT. AGAIN.  
> Anyone else who writes original works feel like they’re a cheating whore when they go back and forth between fanfiction and their other works?  
> Also I mentioned that I’d write this fic. We finally got here folks. The ‘no one died’ part of our segment. Which means more chances for DRAMA. 
> 
> x  
> The premise of this story can only be maintained if several things are universally understood:
> 
> One- Voldemort never existed. Use your imagination as for why.  
> Two- There are anti-descrimination laws against werewolves, but no one enjoys having to accommodate an employee who needs to have at least two sick days a month. Those that are ‘known’ werewolves must follow strict laws and be on government-approved wolfsbane.  
> Three- It is a common opinion that Remus belonged in Ravenclaw, asked to be in Gryffindor, and definitely has Slytherpuff tendencies.  
> Four- Due to the lack of megalomaniacs and subsequent gang-wars, timelines and alliances are skewed for my needs and I regret nothing.
> 
> I don't want to give too much away in the tags or the summary, but this was a brain child of three different story ideas. As per my usual, there will be drama, romance, and (sex) gratuitous use of the fix-it trope. As the story develops, I may need to update tags based on peer reviews, but I am hoping y'all are here for Snarky Severus and Sweet Remus like I am!

xXx

It all started, as with it’s alternate universe, at the birth of Harry Potter. 

It was a bit of a hyperbole, since the problems all began much earlier (as we are all very much aware), but Remus knew that Lily’s birth announcement was the beginning of the metaphorical landslide. Everything compounded little by little from their childhood up until that point, and now the downfall began. From the age of fifteen to his now mentally and physically weary twenty-five, he had a decade to stew on poor choices and terrible consequences. 

Yet, when he got the internationally-stamped letter from James Potter, he found that he couldn’t deny his request. He was just coming up to the end of his lease, and subsequent finishing of his work contract, so he was technically available and untethered. The timing was impeccable, and instead of taking his boss up on her offer to join her in Egypt studying the vampire coven and their rumoured ‘alternative’ culture, he found his thoughts turning back to his home country. 

Remus left England at the age of nineteen, helping his father with his bookshop after he graduated Hogwarts, and then drifting for a year after his sudden death. He knew he could have settled into owning the shop himself, but the need to cut his ties and flee from his past mistakes was too powerful to ignore. He took the first opportunity to apprentice under the Mazoologist who sold her books at his father’s shop via an exclusive contract. 

Rosette Mellowmoore was as passionate as she was pithy, and it was because of this that she penned several world-renowned books on various species of magical creatures. She came to his father’s funeral to not only offer her sincerest condolences, but also to see if she would have to renegotiate her contract with Lyall Lupin’s successor. She was old enough to be Remus’s mother twice over, but she had never produced children (nor did she care to) and found her fulfillment elsewhere. When she heard that Remus wasn’t planning to take over his father’s shop, or rather, was too despondent to even consider it, she offered him a spot helping in her research. 

She was due to spend the next two years in the northern territories of Canada, researching and collaborating with Inuit and Cherokee tribes to observe and document the behaviour of several region-specific magical creatures. They ended up living there for over four years, moving every few months to a new area so they could meet up with local medicine men and women who could help them track the beasts. Rosette was insanely interested in the Amarok; an ancestral deviation from werewolves, but they ended up researching a great manner of different beings over their time there. 

What started off as a simple job and escape from England quickly became a passion. Remus learned a great deal of things, but found that his werewolf blood made him almost invincible to a lot of the more vicious creatures. While on their journey, Remus worked side by side with an Auror who was hired by Rosette for protection. His name was Lawrence Tsula, and together they were able to keep the researching crew safe despite Rosette’s thirst for trouble. 

Lawrence, or Law, who was relocated back to British Columbia and asked Remus to join him or give him a reason to stay. That was a year ago, and Remus could never understand why he didn’t take him up on his offer. Ever since Law left, it was like the enjoyment slowly whittled away until the prospect of spending any more time researching made him feel monotonous. 

So when he got the letter from James, begging him to come home and meet his son, Remus packed up his things and returned to the UK for the first time in over five years. 

His mother, Hope, was relieved to see him come home, and hugged him tightly for several long moments when he stepped through the floo after two international portkeys and severe sleep-debt. He tried to keep in touch, and wrote to her often on his travels, but he knew she missed him dearly since his father’s death. Neither of them spoke about Lyall, even though his presence felt like a heavy rain across their shoulders. Instead, Remus settled, tried to catch up on his sleep and failed miserably, and then readied himself for an awkward reunion. 

The first person he met when he arrived at the address James had written in his letter, was thankfully Lily. She answered the door with a swollen belly and a kind smile. She was due any day now, and Remus was sort of glad in retrospect that he made it before the birth. He awkwardly hugged her, dodging around her stomach, and then she ushered him inside and closed the door behind him. He walked behind her, feeling increasingly out of place with each step.

“He’ll be happy to see you.” Lily threw over her shoulder, her long red hair pulled into a messy braid that swayed from side to side as she waddled down the hall. “You saved us from a floo call from his gran.”

“Evangeline?” Remus felt like he was transplanted into the memories of a previous life. She was the matriarch of the Potter household, eldest of all her siblings, and who doted on James endlessly. It was no surprise to anyone that he was her favourite grandchild, despite being the troublemaker in his youth.

“She wants us to name our son Augustus.” She wrinkled her nose in clear distaste.    
  
“It’s not  _ that _ bad.” Laughed a voice from the living room that Remus didn’t expect to cause him so many mixed emotions. 

“James.” Remus acknowledged him with a smile that was equal parts wary and warm. 

“Moony!” James was on his feet and crossing the room before Remus could sort his feelings out. He was pulled into a bear hug that he barely had time to reciprocate before James was stepping back and putting his hands on his shoulders. He glanced Remus up and down, taking in his appearance with joy. “It’s brilliant to see you again. Look at you! Taller than all of us now! What’s in that Canadian air?”

“A terrible chill.” Remus joked wryly. 

“Had to grow a beard not to freeze your nose off?” James pinched at his cheek with a laugh. “It’s good to see you, mate. Things haven’t been the same!” He stepped back, and turned away before he could see Remus’s reaction to his blunt comment. 

It wasn’t the same because Remus had barely spoken to any of them since they were all eighteen. He hadn’t even attended their wedding, telling James he was in the middle of delicate research and couldn’t get away in his return letter. James was speaking like Remus was gone for maybe a year and things would fall into place now that he was back. The truth was much messier and more complicated than that, and yet none of them were willing to breach the subject. 

“Tea, Remus?” Lily offered, heading towards the kitchen.

“Don’t trouble yourself on my account, I can make some if you just show me where things are.” He offered immediately. He had seen first hand how hard a pregnancy could be on someone up in the northern tribes. 

“I’m pregnant, not invalid.” She threw him a joking smile. “Besides, you don’t want James to make it.”

“It was _ one time _ !” James called after his wife, scandalized. “I swear, you put too much sugar in her mother’s tea once and now you’re deemed useless!” He gave a long suffering sigh and clapped Remus on the back. “Do you see the abuse I endure?”

Remus chuckled on the verge of awkward and familiar. “If I recall, you definitely asked for it.”

“Honestly!” James shook his head, but his eyes were soft as he looked after his wife. “She’s killing me, Moony. She even put up Snivillus’s name as a potential godparent!”

Remus flinched heavily, tensing at the name and trying to settle the roil of negative emotions in his stomach that surfaced as a result.

James continued on brazenly. “I can’t believe her. He won’t even step foot in his house and she thinks he’ll take care of my  _ son _ ?”

“I wasn’t aware they were on speaking terms.” Remus admitted carefully, turning away to hide his troubled expression. He instead focused on the photos on the mantle above the fireplace. 

“She’s written to him a few times over the years. He finally wrote back a few months ago and now she’s acting like they’re great chums!”

Remus cleared his throat awkwardly. “I see.”

“Anyways. Tell me about you! What have you been up to?”

Remus was careful not to delve into any sensitive subjects as he told them bits and pieces of what he’d been doing the past few years. Lily and James were both listening intently, and Remus found himself relaxing bit by bit. He thought they’d bring up the wedding, or his previous absence, but instead they allowed him to ramble on about his travels. In return they offered their own stories, although they were much more tame in comparison. Lily ended up working in magical law as an attorney, and James hopped prospects for a few years before he settled into a part time clerk position at St. Mungos children's ward. It was because of the nature of their jobs that Lily would be returning to work a few months after the baby was born, and James was ecstatic to be a stay at home dad. 

Overall, the visit was a success. James waxed poetic a little thickly over Remus's return and how he would be roping him into more frequent visits once the baby arrived. They only mentioned Sirius once in passing, which Remus was thankful for. Apparently the man who had a giant distaste for rules went off and became an auror, to Remus's eternal surprise. James spoke as though he regretted Remus couldn't see Sirius at the same time, but he was working on a complicated case lately and would catch him later. Meanwhile Peter ended up working behind a desk as a bookkeeper for a magical artifact repair company. It ended on a positive note, but Remus was relieved to excuse himself when another floo call came in from James's relatives. 

He knew he couldn't avoid seeing Peter or Sirius in the long term, but Remus could admit to himself that he was a bit of a coward and wasn't in a hurry to rip off the bandage. 

xXx

It wasn't Peter or Sirius that Remus saw next, but rather the man he expected to see the least. If it weren't for his keen sense of smell or the familiar head of dark hair, Remus probably would have overlooked him completely. He had to step into wizarding London for a few things; first of all to transfer his small savings back over to Gringotts. His head jerked up on instinct when he left the shop, the breeze carrying the familiar scent over to him. What was even more surprising than his presence, was what he was doing. 

Severus Snape, hair a touch longer so he could pull it all over one shoulder, was kneeling in front of a baby carriage. 

Remus blinked, stunned motionless as he watched Severus reach into the baby carrier and produce a very tiny, very disgruntled infant. The little thing couldn't have been more than a few months old, and squawked indignantly when Severus lifted them out and put them against his chest with its little head peeking over his shoulder. He did it all with the same determined scowl on his face that Remus used to see over a cauldron in Hogwarts. 

Severus Snape had a child. He was probably married, and he was holding onto a baby with practiced ease. On further scrutiny, the child was wearing a little hat, and the clothes were dark blue, but the skin tone was much paler than one would expect. Severus was wearing a dark high-collared cloak, that was probably much too warm for the summer heat, but didn't appear to be uncomfortable. 

The baby settled, and Remus wasn't sure what the jumbled mix of emotions he felt was, but Severus disappeared into the shopfront shortly after and Remus was snapped from his stupor by an annoyed witch trying to get around him. It was an apothecary, a lesser known one that Remus was sure opened after he left England. 

Instead of standing around like a berk, Remus decided a more delicate approach would suffice. Sometime after the chaos all died down, he would ask Lily what happened to him when he could catch her alone and swear her to secrecy. She knew what had happened when they were all sixth years, and so surely she'd understand his concern. 

xXx

On July 31st, Remus was finally starting to feel settled enough to start looking at potential job prospects. His wolfsbane request was approved by the ministry, and now he had to wait until they assigned him a potioneer. He still had time until the next full moon, since he spent his last one in Canada just a week or so before. 

The day was shaping up to be a lax one. He and his mother were enjoying each other's company quietly with tea and some chocolate biscuits. He wasn't expecting any mail, and from the confused and curious look on Hope's face when she stood up to let the owl in the window, neither was she. Since it was her residence, Remus watched her open the letter, assuming it was from a relative or friend. Instead she read the first few words and then quickly handed it over. 

The letter was succinct and vague. Minerva McGonagall was requesting a meeting with him at his soonest convenience, the tone of the letter was urgent, and so he followed the instructions and floocalled her office directly. 

"Ah, yes. Mr. Lupin. Thank you for your prompt reply." She sounded harried and frustrated, and so Remus was a little wary. He hadn't spoken to her since his days at Hogwarts, and although she had been a fair and accommodating head of house, she was much closer to James and Sirius. It probably had something to do with the fact that they were in her office at least twice a week, more often if they were caught, and Sirius loved riling her up. 

"Shall I come through?" Remus offered. 

"Please do, if you can spare a moment." 

"Of course." In a few short seconds, he was hit with the most nostalgic sense of deja vu. He remembered the nervousness in his gut whenever he stepped into the room as a student, and now he felt as though he were somehow about to be reprimanded again for not keeping James and Sirius on a shorter leash. 

"Thank you for coming." She gestured to the seat across from her. "Have a seat."

"It's a pleasure to see you again." Remus told her politely, and was surprised to find that despite his anxiety, the words were accurate. He had missed Hogwarts and the safety and acceptance of its halls, even if he did leave on a sour note. 

"You as well, although I wish this were under less stressful circumstances. I was told by Mr. Potter that you studied under a Mazoologist in Canada, is this true?"

"Yes. For close to eight years." His mind began to spin; there was a student who was injured, a dangerous creature sighting, a werewolf who needed coaching. His mind filled in all manner of needs and he straightened his spine and began talking about his work under Rosette Mellowmoore, hoping that he'd have some information she would need to help her. He had seen all manner of creature, some as simple as a flubberworm, and as complex as a thunderbird. 

"I see." Minerva nodded, jotting down notes quickly as he spoke. "And you are currently unemployed?" 

"I… yes?" He was taken aback at the non sequitur. "Do you require help with a new magical creature that has taken residence on the grounds? I could call up some colleagues if you think it would require more than one person to deal with…"

"Ah, no. My apologies." She readjusted her glasses and gave a little sniff. She still had a pinched expression on her face, but it was relaxing the longer Remus was in her company. "I never expected you to end up in mazoology, last we spoke you were considering curse breaking. I wanted to hear your confirmation rather than assume Potter was simply having me on."

"Well James is one for mischief." Remus joked lightly. 

"Indeed." Minerva shared a knowing smile with him before she clasped her hands in front of herself and leveled him with a serious look. "Mr. Lupin, our current Care of Magical Creatures professor left rather abruptly a week ago and we are in dire straits to replace them. I spoke with Mr. Potter this past Tuesday and he suggested I speak to you."

Remus's mouth dropped open in shock, heart clenching and then soaring at the news. He had never expected James would put his name forth, and to teach in any capacity was always a joy for him. It felt too good to be true, but he shook himself out of the daze when Minerva started talking again. 

"It will be a probationary year, of course, and I am aware this is all rather unorthodox. Unfortunately, Headmaster Dumbledore is busy with personal matters and couldn't be here for your interview, and so he left the task to myself. This is asking a lot of you and on short notice, and so I understand if you need a day to think it over…" 

"I'll take it." 

Minerva looked surprised, although he couldn't fathom why. 

"Are you sure? You would be starting almost immediately. You'll need to go over lesson plans and have them approved, plus you'll need to move into the castle." 

"What papers do you need me to sign?" He redirected her, absolutely certain that he wouldn't need time to think this over. It was the perfect set of circumstances, something he would have never expected in his wildest dreams. He would have a full time job, he wouldn't be a burden on his mother, and he could regulate his time with James a little more. If things went sour like he dreaded they might once the novelty wore off, then he would have an excuse to not see the rest of the Marauders. 

"Well, I, I suppose gratitude is in order." Minerva looked equal parts disbelieving and relieved, grabbing the papers they needed and showing him where to start reviewing his work contract. "This saves me a great deal of headache looking elsewhere."

"I should be thanking you. It's not often a werewolf is offered a job as prestigious as this one." He signed his name with a flourish. "Although I will need to speak with my case manager at the Ministry and find a potioneer in Scotland now."

"Ah, yes. Headmaster Dumbledore has already arranged that with our Potions professor." She looked a bit uncertain, but waved off his concerned look. "Now, about your classes…"

They spoke for an hour, ironing out the details and Remus’s start date. By the end of it Minerva told him that he should probably start calling her by her given name, since they would be coworkers. He said it would feel disrespectful and she chuckled. By the time he left her office he was in high spirits, and knew he would have to call on James and thank him sincerely for his recommendation. 

Of course, it would turn out that James was rather indisposed considering his wife was giving birth to Harry James Potter. Remus barely had a foot in the door before his mother informed him of the news, since another owl had arrived shortly after his departure asking him to go to the local hospital. He barely had time to feel apprehensive, rushing to grab his baby present he procured the day before and quickly apparating as close as he could to the hospital. 

X

Sirius Black was in his auror robes when Remus arrived at the maternity ward of the local hospital. At first he didn't think anything of the other man, aside from recognizing his robes and stature. It was the full-bellied laugh that pulled his attention and sent him straight back ten years in the past. He stopped walking rather abruptly, and felt wariness creep up. It wasn't that he thought he could avoid this, per se, it was simply that he was never going to be prepared to see the man who tried to get him to murder another student. 

Remus was in too much shock back then to deal with the emotional onslaught that came with waking up and realizing that you had nearly killed another human being. That fated full moon in their sixth year was in May, and so he finished the school year in a haze of numb shock. He went extremely low contact with all the Marauders for that summer, and only spoke to Lily via owl. She said she understood how upset he must be, and tried to coax him into expressing himself and coming to terms with what had happened. 

That summer, Remus had spent hiding in the back of his father's shop, ducking away whenever James, Peter, or Sirius came to call. He didn't know how he felt, but he did know that he didn't want to see them. 

Seventh year, Remus returned, but didn't expect the overwhelming rage when he saw Sirius Black face to face. He had never been so sick with fury before, and he didn't know how to digest it. The intensity shocked him more than anything, but he realized why he was so frustrated when Sirius waltzed up to him and slung an arm around his shoulders like nothing had happened. 

Sirius didn't have any remorse, and he was acting like he was gracious enough to forget Remus's disappearing act. Remus shrugged off his arm, but he didn't say anything about the rage clawing up from his chest. He spent most of his life trying to push himself down into a smaller form, quiet, reserved, not confrontational. It wasn't because he didn't have opinions, it was because he didn't want to find the end of his rope and see madness staring back at him from the abyss with jagged teeth. 

Remus was hopeful to see Lily, to speak to her about the incident in person. He felt like she was the only one who could really understand how he was feeling. That his friends expected him to sit back and just accept that his worst nightmares had occurred and it was thanks to them. Except when he found her, her lips were attached to James, and it was apparent they had started to date sometime over the summer. 

He felt a cold chill wash over him, and realized that he was completely alone. James was always quick to change the subject that year whenever it went dangerously close to The Incident, and once or twice he tried to sooth Remus over when Sirius and Peter weren't around, but Remus couldn't fathom how they weren't more disgusted by the actions of that night. Even Lily, Severus's best friend growing up, was able to forget it and move on. 

Remus? He couldn't. 

He had time to let the anger drain away, but the trust would never return until Sirius actually showed remorse for one second in his life. Remus resigned himself to playing nice awkwardly, and took in the others in attendance. Really, he was the outsider here, no matter how much James wished it wasn't true. Peter was wearing a sharp suit, a little pudgy around the middle, but put together and clearly thriving. He was speaking to a woman that Remus didn't recognize; an older woman with firey red hair pulled up into a bun. Remus felt rather silly when he concluded this must be Lily’s mother, because of course she would be there. 

The last woman was Carolina, a Gryffindor of their year who became Lily’s best friend in seventh year, and went on to join the same law firm. Sirius and Care had an on again off again relationship in school, but he had no idea if they were seeing each other now. 

Sirius saw him and cut himself off mid-sentence, which drew everyone else's attention. Remus met his gaze and wondered how he would react, tensing for an attack that he couldn't deny was a likely possibility. Sirius never reacted well to people disagreeing with him, and it must have been glaringly obvious after six years of no contact that Remus was one of those people. 

His eyes flickered through several possibilities, each one making Remus more cautious than the last, before a cheerful persona fell over Sirius like a well-worn mask. "Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes!" The abrupt change in demeanor caught Remus off guard, and he walked over cautiously. 

"I didn't get the news until now. Is she out of labour?" He focused on the matter at hand, turning to offer acknowledging smiles to the others present. 

"They're just finishing up now." Carolina informed him with a vibrant smile. "Average weight and height, we are told! They named him Harry." 

"Harry James Potter." Sirius repeated proudly. "I still say 'Sirius' would have been a better middle name, but alas…" He grinned jokingly. 

Carolina smacked his chest lightly, "then you go have your own and you can name them whatever you want."

The conversation was interrupted when the doors to the delivery suites opened and Lily was wheeled through with a little yellow bundle in her arms and a wildly beaming husband at her side. They gave them space as they settled Lily and Harry into their room, but James turned to the others and ushered them over excitedly. 

"Look at him." His eyes glistened with proud tears. "He's perfect, isn't he?"

Sirius clapped him on the back and peered down at Harry's face. "Oh no, poor kid looks like you, Prongs. Looks like he got the short end of the stick."

"Oh, shut it." Lily rolled her eyes at his antics, and then smiled down at her son. "He is going to be a handsome one."

Remus let them crowd around and instead focused on finding a place to put his presents. Much to his surprise, there was already a gift on the windowsill, a large carrier bag with nappies and receiving blankets, a modest dark blue and silver bag instead of cheerful and cartoonish like Remus expected. He placed his own gift beside the bag and then James called him over. 

"Want to meet him?" 

Remus shyly walked over the group and peered down at the little boy, unable to help the endeared smile that curled up his lips. Sirius was right that the baby looked a lot like James, but not an exact replica; the eyes were soft and rounded like Lily's. He was going to be a very handsome and happy little boy, and Remus felt blessed to be able to be there to see it. For the first time since his return, he decided he had made the right choice in coming home. 


	2. Hide and Seek

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: So as I informed Sly, this is a combination of three different fic ideas that I’ve been mulling over for the last few months. I know I said I’d write the Drarry part of the Soul and Flora series, but, uh… //runs off flailing//

  
X

"Come on in!" Lily threw open the door for Remus a few days later, barely acknowledging who was there before she was walking back down the hallway. "Don't mind the mess, Remus. It's been hectic getting settled in with all the visitors."

"I'm sorry to intrude." He hurried after her. 

"Oh, it's no trouble at all!" She insisted. "And thank you so much for the wrap! James will love it once he learns how to  _ follow instructions _ ." She said the last words pointedly. 

"I almost got it last time!" James shot back. 

"I can show you, if you need it." Remus offered, amused. The dark blue wrap was sitting on the back of the couch, handwritten instructions on the coffee table and slightly crumpled. 

"You've worn one?" James looked at him incredulously. 

"Oh, well. They're really popular up north so the parents can keep their hands free. The woman who made it actually had me hold her children for her a few times while I was staying there." Remus admitted, a bit bashful. "I got used to wearing it by the third time, but it is a different feeling."

"Well!" James exclaimed, but didn't follow up on it. Harry was a tiny bundle in his arms as he sat on the couch feeding him with a bottle, hence why he didn't get up to greet his guest. 

"Oh, and Harry loves the bunny. It's so soft. He loves to touch it." Lily gushed thankfully as she walked in and settled down into the plush rocking chair, tea set following behind her and placing itself down on the table before them. 

"I'm glad." Remus sat down on the other seat across from James. "I know it's not as practical as your other gifts." His eyes were naturally drawn to the carrier bag that had clearly already gotten some use. 

"Oh, but it is absolutely useful! Harry won't sleep without it nearby." Lily assured him. "And like I said, James will figure the wrap out… Eventually."

"Did you want to hold him?" James offered abruptly, hoping to change the subject. 

"Are you sure?" 

"Sure. He just ate so here's a receiving blanket." He tossed one at Remus and then stood up to bring the child over. 

Remus settled Harry into his arms with no fuss, still so amazed that his schoolmates had made such a tiny little miracle. In some ways he still felt too much like a child himself. He wanted children, of course, but he always thought of it as a long-shot pipedream. Harry was gazing up at him curiously, mouth moving around as if trying to form words, and his pale eyes were surrounded by thick lashes. 

"He really is something." Remus told them softly. "Congratulations, I don't think I said it enough last time."

Lily and James beamed. 

"By the way, did McGonagall get a hold of you?" James asked mischievously. 

"That's actually why I am here." Remus smiled. "I wanted to thank you, and also tell you that as of next Monday, I'll be moving to Hogwarts." 

Lily clapped her hands joyfully. "That's brilliant! I told James you'd get it!"

"I cannot thank you enough, the opportunity is once in a lifetime." Remus put all his sincerity and gratitude into his tone. 

"Think nothing of it! I knew you liked teaching, but I guess it is rather short notice. I suppose we won't be seeing much of you once the term starts."

"Ah, no. I'm afraid not. I'm going to try to come by when I can…"

Lily interjected here. "We understand."

He wondered when their goodwill and patience for him would start to run out. Even though he knew that these were the same people he grew up with, he could feel that they were putting up a front. Whether or not it was anger or something closer to hurt underneath, would reveal itself in time. Peter had already written to him to welcome him back to the UK, but the letter didn’t say much else. He figured that was fair, considering he and Peter were not the closest, even in school. Their close proximity was their common interest.

Remus gazed down at the child in his arms and wondered if there was another universe where he was there the whole time, watching James and Lily get married, going drinking with his friends, becoming that curse-breaker he thought he would be. Perhaps he and Sirius would have hashed things out and become closer than before, with Remus feeling like he could finally tell him his real thoughts instead of swallowing them down with a placid smile. 

So many possibilities, and he could see them all in Harry’s eyes. He hoped he would be kind, and energetic, and all the best qualities of his parents. He hoped that Sirius spoiled him but didn’t teach him to be cruel, and that Peter would teach him how to play gobstones since he was the only one patient enough and willing to lose. Perhaps, one day, Remus would be that uncle he came to talk to about serious topics, or for help in school. He liked the idea of that. 

An owl interrupted his musings, and James stood up to quickly address it. “Sorry, I’ve been waiting for this. It’s about my paternity leave- I’ll be just a moment.”

“Take your time.” Remus offered graciously. “I don’t mind.”

James took the letter into another room, ripping it open without finesse as he walked inside and half-shut the door. 

Remus glanced up at Lily and offered her a smile. “He really does have your eyes.”

She looked surprised. “You’re the only one aside from James to point that out.”

“I bet they’ll be green.”

Lily’s expression softened. “I hope so, too.”

“What other things did people get you? I noticed the bag at the hospital. It’s rather nice.” He made small talk. 

“Ah, yes, the carrier is from Severus, actually. Pragmatic as ever.” There was still something in her eyes that looked unbearably touched by the gesture as she looked at the present. 

Remus pursed his lips and looked down at Harry, unsure if this was the correct time to ask her the questions that were burning within him.

“I know… you have history.” Lily offered delicately. 

“Please, it’s okay.” He shook his head to deter her from that line of thinking. “I want to hear it. I’m glad he’s back in your life. I… I actually saw him the other day from afar.” She looked eager to hear more. “He looked like he was doing well, he had a child with him…” He risked a glance at her to gauge her reaction. 

“Oh! I haven’t met Draco yet!” She cooed. “I suppose we won’t meet him until the hols, either. You two will be hard to get a hold of for the next few months.” She shrugged as if to say ‘what can you do?’. 

“Well that’s a headache.” James re-entered the room, scratching his head. “I’ll need to go in tomorrow, they messed up my application.” 

Lily sighed. “Well, how about I put Harry down and you two can chat?” She walked over and took the baby from Remus’s arms, and then disappeared into the nursery. 

James and Remus busied themselves with reheating the teapot and then making up their own cups. It wasn’t until Remus was simmering in the awkward silence as he took a sip from his own cup that James cleared his throat awkwardly and looked directly at him. 

“You’re… not going to forgive us, not really, are you?”

The panic and shock struck like a bolt to his chest, and he must have looked a little like he took a stunning spell to the chest, because James chuckled awkwardly. 

“To be honest. I am surprised you returned.” He continued despite Remus’s silence. “I get the feeling that you have one foot out the door, like you’re waiting for us to fuck up again.”

Remus looked away and placed his cup down, not wanting it to be obvious that his hands were shaking. 

He’d always hated confrontation with the other Marauders, but that clearly had something to do with the fact that he never felt completely safe. James would always choose Sirius, and Peter would follow in his footsteps. It was part of the reason why he felt so wretched about their school years; he should have done more, but he was too much of a coward. 

It all came down to that, didn’t it? Too much of a coward to stand up to his friends, so he resented them instead. Too much of a coward to move with Law, letting a potential lover slip away because he couldn’t figure out his own emotions. It made him angry at himself, because maybe if he had a spine none of this would have happened. What was the point of friends he couldn’t fully trust? That he couldn’t be himself around? Why was he still so scared to lose their good graces, when it was clear that the alternative was to just fade out of their lives?

“You’re right.” Remus admitted, thankful that Sirius wasn’t there and the conversation was one-on-one. It gave him a little more confidence. “I haven’t forgiven you.”

“I…” James made a frustrated gesture where he pulled his hair back from his face and scowled. “I know we were shits, Moony.” He looked like it was physically difficult to push the words out. “I’ll admit, it took me until Lil raked me over the coals a few times, so maybe you were right to stay away, but is this it? You’re just  _ not _ going to talk about it? I expected you to yell, or say something. We can’t fix things if you don’t  _ talk _ .” He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, eyes staring into the middle distance between them. “I just want to know if there’s a point in apologizing.”

“I… Don’t know.” Remus answered truthfully, his tone a little cold. “I just assumed you’d never admit you were wrong.”

James scoffed, body strung tight with agitation. “You really do, don’t you? Merlin, she was right.”

Remus could feel they were reaching dangerous territories. “What?”

“ _ James _ .” Lily was back, standing in the doorway with a warning tone.

He stood up abruptly, addressing his wife instead of Remus. “Sorry, it’s just a little upsetting to hear one of your best mates thinks so lowly of you.”   
  
Lily crossed her arms across her chest and her face steeled over. 

“Snape is one thing, I get that.” James threw his hand out, voice raising in barely-controlled emotion. “I thought-”

Lily stepped around the couch and James cut himself off, but it was to Remus that she addressed her words. “Remus it’s up to you if you want to forgive him, Severus won’t, and that’s completely valid.” James made a scoff of protest in the background that she ignored. “I think it’s unfair, however, if you continue to let him think that there’s a chance things can be fixed.”

Remus felt his stomach sink, realizing that there was a truth to her words. What was he doing, coming around, when he wasn’t sure about what he needed to hear from them? 

“He did apologize to Severus.” Lily informed him. “Through letters. It was a part of the reason why he eventually wrote me back. He told us he would have a friendship with me, but that he would not forgive James, and we have both agreed that’s fair.” 

Remus’s eyes widened and he turned to James, as if he expected to see the lie written across his face. Instead he looked a bit sour, but accepting. They must have already fought and compromised over this. The fact that he knew that made the bitter ache in his chest feel partially soothed, and he felt his tension ease. 

“I didn’t know.”

“Yeah, well…” James gave him a frustrated look. “You’d know if you bothered to answer half of my letters. I didn’t say anything because I thought you’d just stop responding. I can’t stay on thin ice forever, Moony.”

“I suppose you’re right.” Remus stood up, knowing that he couldn’t give him an answer right that moment, and to stay any longer would be unfair. “You’ve given me a lot to think about, and I’ll contact you soon.” He turned to Lily. “Thank you, sincerely. I’m glad I got to meet Harry; it felt like the first right thing I’ve done in a long time.”

Then he left.

xXx

Remus didn’t have much time to think about the situation during the day while he prepared for his move to Hogwarts. He already contacted Rosette and asked her if she’d allow him to use her book for his classes, to which she giddily agreed and sent him several overzealous lesson-plan ideas. Half of which he had to veto immediately due to the fact that they were too dangerous, or required international travel of magical creatures that were most decidedly illegal in the UK. He thanked her, and proceeded to set up a proxy venue where the students could pick up their books in Diagon Alley. Flourish and Botts were a little miffed he wasn’t using a  _ stocked _ item, but eventually agreed to sell the title.

By the time he was due for his portkey, he had half of his lesson plan outlined to show Minerva, but no answer for James. It wasn’t to say he didn’t think about it in the later hours of the night, when he didn’t have schoolwork to distract him. He spoke it over with his mother, who told him that she understood both options. He didn’t need to keep friends from his schooldays, but if he did decide to rekindle the relationships, then he needed to be more honest with them. History would repeat itself if he didn’t, and it was clear to her that James actually did miss him. 

“If he didn’t, he wouldn’t have said anything.” Hope reminded him. “And it’s within your right to do what that other boy did; only have a relationship with one and not the other. They are not a package deal. You can cultivate friendships with one person and not the others.”

Remus had the feeling that his mother was trying to gently direct him in that direction. She didn’t want him to lose all his friends, and it was clear that James was willing to put the work in. She didn’t give him any indication of how she felt about Sirius, but he had always had the inkling she didn’t approve of him. The strange thing was, during their earlier years at Hogwarts, it was Sirius that Remus was closer to. James was rather one-track minded, but Sirius had several different interests, so if he had to choose who he felt more betrayed by, it was Sirius. 

And maybe that was it; what he wanted the most was _ Sirius _ to acknowledge he’d hurt him in more ways than one. That wasn’t fair to James though, and so he was back to square one. 

xXx

“Ah, Remus, my boy.” 

Albus Dumbledore didn’t look different at all; still the same long grey beard, twinkling eyes, and offbeat choice of robe colours. Today’s ensemble was periwinkle powder blue, with a lavender hat, and golden pointed shoes. He was waiting for Remus in Hogsmeade when he arrived at the apparition point, ushering him over with a graceful gesture. Remus still felt like a child in his presence, but he could admit it was nice to feel important enough to warrant a visit from the Headmaster. 

“I do regret not being able to sit in on your interview.” He spoke as they walked along the path towards Hogwarts at a leisurely pace. “Unfortunately, there were some family matters to attend to. I had the utmost confidence in you, however.” 

“Thank you, headmaster.”

“I do hope you’ll be able to settle in before the students arrive. We’ve placed you near the lower west hallway, it’s the closest we could get you to the grounds where you’ll be teaching.” He explained. “There will also be a classroom you can utilize if you wish to do more theory lessons.” 

“I see.” Remus was still slightly overwhelmed by the knowledge that he was going to be teaching at Hogwarts, and even as it came looming into view, he still felt like pinching himself. 

They walked in through the west entrance, and Remus was shown to the first corridor off the main hallway. His rooms were full of windows, spacious, and inviting. He knew immediately that he’d never be able to utilize all the space for anything other than his books and sparse collection of personal items. The room was decorated in modest beiges and browns, which suited him just fine. 

“I’ll leave you to unpack.” Albus smiled at him. “There’s a staff meeting for just general introductions at four. It’s, of course, in the corridor off the east wing, I’m sure you can find it.” There was something in his wizened eyes that made Remus feel sheepish that yes, he already knew where it was thanks to the map he and his friends had created. 

Minerva came by shortly after three thirty to fetch him, and he thanked her once again for her help in landing the position. 

"Don't thank me just yet." She waved off his gratitude as they walked to the staff room together. "Once term has started and you're dealing with teenagers you may not feel so eager."

Remus felt his steps stagger just the slightest bit once they arrived on the correct floor. There was a scent that he would know anywhere, and he felt his heart clenching in nerves as they entered into the staff room. He immediately started to look for the source, and let his guard down once he realized the owner wasn't there. He was distracted by introductions to the other teachers, feeling strange when they insisted he call them by their first names. 

"Everyone." Albus drew their attention, "I am afraid we will have to start without our potions professor-"

"-No need Albus, I am here."

Severus Snape entered the room in a rush, clearly just arriving from his out of breath state and windswept hair. Remus felt like he was watching a scene from a motion picture. He should have known that it was Severus just from his scent being all over the staff room, but it still felt like a punch to the gut. He had cut his hair from the other day; just longer than past his chin, but not as long as it had been shopping. His robes were a slate grey, but they didn't have sleeves, instead the long black turtleneck underneath covered him to his wrists. Remus couldn't help but look at his arm, even knowing that he'd never see it through his clothes. 

"Severus, I told you that you needn't rush." Albus told him gently, tone softening to something resembling concern. 

"I am fine." He responded shortly, cutting off any further comment, and sitting down on the other side of the table. 

"Yes, well as you are all aware, Severus has graciously accepted the Potions position for another year, which leads us to our newest faculty member; Remus Lupin."

Remus expected a reaction, but Severus didn't even look at him. He was too busy glaring a hole into the table. At once he knew that the other man must have been warned, which was off-putting considering that no one else had offered  _ him _ the same courtesy. He recalled Lily mentioning they would both be busy until the hols, but he never expected this…

"Thank you all for your patience. I will strive to fill Professor Kettleburn's shoes." He barely even registered the words coming out of his own mouth, when everything was attuned to watching Severus. 

He could hardly recall any of what was said during the meeting. He kept waiting for Severus to say or do something to indicate his disapproval, but the other man was oddly silent through the whole meeting. Remus had half-cocked plans to try and catch him outside the meeting room to talk, but Severus and Albus immediately swept off to the side to speak in low whispers. Even if he refused to acknowledge that Remus was in the same room outwardly, he clearly knew to account for his hearing and uttered a muffling spell. 

"I was told by Dumbledore to help yer." Hagrid caught his attention, clapping him on the shoulder with a bushy grin. "You'll be needing a place ter keep the critters for yer classes, eh?"

Remus tore his attention away and turned it to Hagrid reluctantly. "Yes. Thank you, Rubeus. Shall we meet tomorrow to go over housing the creatures?"

xXx


	3. Nobody Loves Me

Severus told himself over and over again that this would be the last year he taught at Hogwarts, but he had the sinking suspicion that Albus wouldn’t let him go so easily. That mantra was even more important to his psyche now that Remus fucking Lupin had been hired, and knowing the bastard, he would probably end up staying on long term. After all, who hired werewolves? Even if they were on Wolfsbane, and had a worker come check up on them to make sure they hadn’t mauled anyone?

Well, in Lupin’s defence, he hadn’t mauled anyone  _ recently _ that Severus was aware of. 

He was in a foul mood when Albus told him who Minerva had hired, although that wasn’t saying much considering he was already at his lowest level of mood that summer. Twenty-five; ten years since his father walked out the door after his mother died, and now he decided to go waltzing back into Severus’s home and assume his son would just let him under some familial blood-ties. Severus returned home from a potioneer conference in France to find his father sitting in his living room like he still owned the place. 

“There you are.” Tobias looked his son up and down with a disgruntled sneer. His feet were up on the coffee table and somehow he'd procured some whiskey. “I see you still look like a twig. What’s with the hair? You turning into a bint?”

Severus could have done several things in that moment, many of the first thoughts would get him in trouble with the law. Instead, he turned on his heel and left. 

He spent the evening drinking in the back of his favourite pub, getting sufficiently sloshed until the traitorous bartender called his ‘emergency contact’ for him. Narcissa showed up with Draco in her arms and a grim purse of her lips, then dragged him to Malfoy Manor through the floo. She made Severus put his godson back to sleep, since it was his fault he was out of bed to begin with, and then sat him down and made him drink two glasses of water while she pulled the story out of him. 

“That house is legally yours.” Lucius arrived the next day, cutting his business trip short to come after Narcissa informed him why Severus was currently staying with them. “Your mother left it to you in her will, did she not?”

“Yes.” Severus sipped his honey-ginger tea, the fog of anxiety, depression, and anger settling on him heavily in the wake of what had occurred. He hadn’t felt this terrible since his school days, and he hated that one look at his traitorous 'father' could put him into such a spin. 

“And you had it changed into your name?” Lucius pressed, waving away the house elves' attempt to serve him tea. 

“Yes.” Severus shot him an annoyed look. “You wouldn’t shut up until I did.”

“Don’t be crass, Severus, it’s beneath you.” The man sniffed in distaste. “Then he has no legal claim and you can evict him.”

“Darling, that’s not the end and you know it.” Narcissa leaned down to kiss her husband’s cheek after she entered the room. 

“It’s the end of  _ one _ problem.” Lucius argued. “And if he gives me permission like I suggested  _ years  _ ago, we can sue him into the ground of child abandonment. I’ll have him in a muggle prison by next Tuesday.”

Lucius was a fixer, always had been, and as a prosecutor, he was very capable of ruining someone’s life if he so wished. The only problem was that he didn’t get it. His parents doted on him incessantly, he had everything he wanted in life; a mansion, riches, a beautiful wife who made him a perfect heir. He took Severus under his wing forcefully the year after his father had disappeared, and then continued to try and primp him into one of his social acolytes.

Narcissa was a bit more understanding. She had parents that never showed her affection, and primed her to be the perfect little pureblood. She knew what failure looked like; growing up she watched her father punish Bellatrix and Andromeda horribly, and did everything not to incur his wrath. Bella ended up in Azkaban for trying to incite a culling and was considered a disgrace. Even though there were some purebloods who agreed with her logic, she was too wild and was caught almost immediately. Meanwhile Andy married one of those mudbloods that her family so despised, earning her a quiet disownment. Her parents had to save face after Bellatrix, so they didn’t outright scorn Andromeda, but they never spoke to her again. Narcissa remained in the middle ground of her sisters; she didn’t care about blood purity deep down, but held herself regally in public. 

She was lucky that she met Lucius; who treated her extremely well. His own father treated his mother like she was a queen, always doting on her and letting her do whatever she wanted. Lucius may not know how to be romantically affectionate, as most of his attempts were awkward and cold, but they were content with one another. Draco was the third attempt at children, and even after Narcissa’s bearing difficulties were exposed, Lucius still stood by her.

Severus wasn’t too proud to admit he envied them. He didn’t have status nor love growing up, and his success was all his own. It made him strong and independent, but almost to a fault. He didn’t know how to process affection as well as most of the population.

Which was why he went to Malfoy Manor instead of what should have been the obvious choice. 

Of course that didn't mean that people who actually gave a damn wouldn't find  _ him _ . Lucius nearly had him convinced to pursue legal action when Albus showed up on their doorstep. 

“Dear Severus!” The old headmaster looked embarrassingly relieved, grabbing onto his shoulders and looking him over for any signs of a physical altercation. “I sent you several owls and all of them returned unopened.”

“As you can see, he is quite alright.” Lucius had that pinched look on his face he always got whenever Albus was around. They were surprisingly similar for two people who had alternate political views and clearly disliked one another. 

“I would wager meeting one’s estranged relative makes him decidedly not ‘alright’.” Albus replied mildly, but the undercurrent was cutting. 

“Oh, bloody hell.” Severus snapped. “I’m not a child.”

“Having emotions does not make you a child.” Albus chastised lightly. “We are all at the mercy of our heart, regardless of age or status.”

“You went to the house?” Severus cut off any further interactions about  _ feelings _ .

“Of course I did.” Albus replied, to which Severus internally groaned. “And I informed that man you were seeking legal counsel.”

“Finally, a stroke of  _ common sense _ .” Lucius hissed under his breath.

“We have perhaps a day or two before he returns.” Albus assured him, and then gestured to the door. “Shall we?”

“Do what, pray tell?” Severus eyed him in distrust. 

“I have a realtor waiting.”

Lucius turned red and glared daggers. “You cannot expect him to just sell the house and run off?!”

“That is exactly what I think he wants. Isn’t it, Severus?”

Severus had a more diplomatic response in front of Lucius, assuring him that he’d enjoy selling the house right from under the man. Of course, Albus knew the truth; he always did. Severus didn’t want to get into any sort of legal battle wherein he would have to meet Tobias face to face, and so he would rather go somewhere that the vile man could never find him again. In the end he did compromise and allow Lucius to sue him in his stead, and was content knowing that Tobias wouldn’t know any peace until Lucius was through tearing him apart legally. 

And so Albus wasn’t able to interview Remus because he was busy helping Severus find a new place and move his things over. In the process, he may or may not have admitted that he threatened Tobias in a few inventive ways; one of which was turning him into a newt. That was why Snape Senior didn’t return in the following few days, and only saw the ‘for sale’ sign from a distance.

Of course, this cemented his position at Hogwarts for the following year, as he now felt he owed Albus again. The first year was as thanks for his guidance when Severus was still in school. When he found out that Severus was living by himself at fifteen, Albus swooped in immediately like some sort of off-beat but benevolent grandfather. He had pushed his way into Severus’s life ever since then, and always managed to manipulate Severus into doing what he wanted because of it. 

Perhaps in another life, Severus would have felt comfortable in throwing a vicious tantrum when he found out that Remus was due to start teaching that same year. Unfortunately, he wrongfully assumed he was always on some sort of probation with Albus and his good graces would eventually run out when he was no longer useful. So he kept his mouth shut and stewed on it in silence. Albus was always a nosey fucker, and so when he offered this as an opportunity for Severus to bury the hatchet he wasn’t surprised. 

It didn’t mean he would.

In fact, thanks to the meeting, Severus was pretty sure he physically  _ couldn’t _ , because just the look of Remus made him shake with barely-contained aggression and thirst for blood.

“It’s very nearly uncontrollable.” Severus informed Albus pointedly in their private conversation after the meeting. Thankfully the rage drained out of him once Lupin left with Hagrid. “And so, I will be avoiding him this year and you will be finding another potion’s professor for next year.”

“Severus.” Albus gave him that same annoying admonishing tone he often did when he thought that  _ Severus _ was the one being unreasonable. 

“You are lucky I didn’t rip his throat out on the spot.” He snapped, crossing his arms across his chest defensively.

“Perhaps if you tried to talk-”

“-Then you’d need new Magical Creatures AND Potions professors.”

Albus gave a long-suffering sigh. “Alright.”

“I will have the house elves deliver his wolfsbane.” Severus went to turn on his heel and stomp off, but Albus touched his elbow to catch his attention. 

“Are  _ you  _ going to be okay this week?”

“Thankfully the first full moon is before the students arrive. I will have a grace period to get used to it before the little gremlins show up.” 

xXx

Remus, embarrassingly, didn’t put two and two together until a house elf showed up with his first dose of Wolfsbane later that week. Despite his best efforts, Severus was a slippery one when he wanted to be. He always managed to disappear when Remus was free from Hagrid in the evenings. When he did see Severus during the day and tried to catch up to him, another teacher would call for his attention and ask him how he was settling in. 

The only bit of news he got about the potion’s master was the fact that ‘little Draco’ had put something in his hair, and so he decided to cut it shorter. He didn’t hear anything of a spouse, however, and even when he tried to press for the information, people would look at him in confusion and not give him a straight answer. He wondered if Severus told them not to tell him anything, which made him feel the slightest bit contrite in the fact that it really was none of his business. 

This, however, was going too far. How could Severus be expected to brew Wolfsbane? Nevermind for a boy who he clearly hated? It was too cruel, and he wouldn’t have it. He’d tell Severus this was the last time, and he’d find someone else. Fueled with righteous confidence, he sought out the potion’s lab, hoping that he wasn’t packed up for the evening just yet and he could catch him before he hid in his rooms. He could smell him once he entered the dungeons, and hopefully that meant he was still in his class. 

“ _ Fuck off, Lupin _ .” 

Remus was stunned by the less than polite greeting when he entered the room, but only for a moment. Severus was glaring at him darkly from over top of his cauldron, hands clenched on top of the table. He expected some snide remark, maybe coldness, but not such a vehemently aggressive display. Something about it affected him in a way he didn’t expect; a flare of agitation and testiness. He stood his ground and returned the glare, as if daring Severus to say something else. 

“There’s no need to be like this.” Remus tried to admonish. 

“Why, you mean you aren’t here to finish the murder attempt you started in sixth year?” He hissed, and the cut immediately drew blood. The words slipped like a knife between his ribs and directly into his heart, making him feel horrid all over again.

“I never meant for that to happen.” Remus whispered, knowing he could hear him. 

“If you were actually sincere you’d leave me the fuck alone.” Severus grabbed the book on his desk and stomped around Remus. He didn’t have to follow him to know he bee-lined straight for his rooms and slammed the door loudly enough to echo all throughout the dungeon corridor. 

xXx

‘ _ Remus, _ _  
_ _  
_ _ I am so terribly sorry. I thought you knew that Severus worked there! Oh, it must have been a shock for both of you. I’ll try to contact him and see if I can smooth things over. For now perhaps it is best to let him cool off. Speaking from experience it takes about two to five years.  _ _  
_ _  
_ _ James will write to you separately, but he was happy to hear from you. We’d be happy to see you in Hogsmeade in the third week of September. I can tell he’s really looking forward to it. _ _  
_ _  
_ _ Lily _ ’

xXx

Remus tried, he really did, to leave Severus alone. It just seemed so unfair that Severus was hiding away while Remus had full range of the castle, like he was bullying him all over again. The arrival of his Wolfsbane the next evening made him even more antsy to try and go smooth things over. He just wanted a chance to tell him he was sorry and he didn’t want to cause him any more trouble, but apparently his mere presence was enough to do it in his stead. 

He wished that Lily had more insight as to what he could do to make things better, but he supposed they were both wadding in the dark. 

The next night he gathered up more courage to try again, but this time he sent him a note through the internal floo network. He asked if there was anything he needed in terms of potion’s ingredients, and since he was the M.C. professor, he may be able to obtain some of them. Severus didn’t respond, and so Remus felt a little emboldened to go and try asking him in person. He could beg the excuse he wasn’t sure if he got the letter or not. 

This time, the door was slammed shut in his face before he was even able to open his mouth and say anything. 

“Honestly!” Remus felt that same spark of confrontational annoyance. “Is this really going to be our relationship this whole year?!” He demanded, banging his palm on the door and watching in satisfaction as it shook violently. 

Severus didn’t answer.

“What will it take then?!” Remus yelled in frustration. “What is the price of your forgiveness?”

Severus threw open the door, face contorted into something dark and dangerous. “The price?! You cannot afford it, Lupin!” 

“Try me.”

Severus’s expression iced over and his lips curled into a triumphant smirk. “One thousand galleons.”

Remus nearly choked on air. “I- I beg your pardon?”

“Shabby clothes, pathetic work ethic, and a dark creature that no one would willingly hire unless they were in dire need.” Severus swept his gaze up and down redragingly. “I told you that you couldn’t afford it.”

Then he shut the door again, and this time cast a shielding and silencing charm over it.

xXx

“Remus, a word, if you will?”

He felt bitter and violently unwell, as it was the dawn of the full moon, but he followed Albus Dumbledore up to his office after breakfast.

“I had the unfortunate displeasure of hearing your argument with Severus last night.”

Remus’s heart dropped somewhere into his stomach. “Ah, headmaster, I apologize…”

“I’m aware that Severus can be quite… difficult.” Albus conceded. “But I do think, in this case, it would be best to leave him alone for a while.”

Remus wished that it was any other day than the full moon, because then he may be able to control himself and answer with a modicum of tact. “I cannot.”

Albus’s eyebrows raised in surprise at the gall. 

“You know what I did. I cannot just sit here and watch him hide in the dungeons every day because he won’t talk to me like an adult.” He felt the words were rather cutting, but he was still sore over the whole one thousand galleons bit, and he was already on the edge thanks to the moon phase. “We have to sort this out. He can’t just not  _ eat _ or enter the common areas, that’s  _ ridiculous _ .”

Albus opened and closed his mouth, straightening out his robes in order to recollect himself. “You have a point.”

“McGo- I mean, Minerva, has already implied she will skin me alive if I resign, and so I must come up with  _ something _ .”

“Well, I am afraid I cannot help you, as I have already overstepped quite enough this year…” Albus sighed. 

“Why did you tell him to make the Wolfsbane?” Remus asked desperately. “That seems rather cruel, doesn’t it?”

Albus smiled sadly. “He would want it to be brewed properly, this is the only way he will know for sure.”

Remus left with two very valuable pieces of information, which would give him the upper hand but would also made him feel terrible if he used them. He resigned himself to a miserable night of ruminating on his options, but the wolf was more ferocious than ever before. He couldn’t calm down, and spent a lot of the night pacing and flexing his claws in barely controlled rage. Somehow, the comments had sunk so deeply under his skin that the wolf took them as a personal affront as well. The one thing he did know was that he needed to address this before the children arrived in two days time. 

“We need to talk.”

Remus normally wouldn’t have asked James to send the map, but desperate times called for desperate measures. It turned out that Severus was hiding away in the kitchens of all places, and so they had the entire population of house elves as their audience. Remus hoped that would deter it from becoming a row, and knew that his own nastiness had depleted with the dawning of a new morning after the full moon. Perhaps they could now speak like civil people without the effects of the full moon heightening them. 

“Ah! Sirs!” Vanta, the house elf that Remus recognized as the one who delivered his Wolfsbane, stepped forward with a wary squeak to her voice. “I shall help you take this somewhere private!”

“You will do-” CRACK. “-No such thing!” 

Vanta had taken them into the potions classroom and then disappeared the moment their feet hit solid ground. 

“Get the fuck out, you bastard.” Severus hissed, and just like that the atmosphere turned heated and dangerous again. 

Remus did not. “Here.” He reached into his pocket and threw something at Severus, the action was supposed to be lighthearted in his precognition of this event. Now it was something mean and confrontational, something that nagged at the back of his mind as abnormal, but he was too on edge to care. He watched as Severus caught the silver and held it up to observe what it was. “Part of my payment. You didn’t say how long I had, so I will be paying in small increments.”

He knew the moment the words left his mouth that they were a mistake, because Severus didn’t hex him like he initially assumed he would. No, he bodily lunged for Remus and slammed him against the wall, hands barely retaining their human form as his claws dug into the flesh of his chest. Something triumphant rose up in Remus, vindictively happy that he was finally getting somewhere. Another dark part of him was whispering in his ear; fight back, tear him up, show him who is stronger.

This was  _ his _ place now.

Remus came back to himself too late to stop the violence from coming to a head, and he knew he had little time to keep this from escalating further. Severus wasn’t in his right mind anymore; he was out for blood, eyes turning a deep, dangerous, yellow. He felt instantly foolish; was he not the Care of Magical Creatures Professor? He had forgotten that he  _ was _ a magical creature. This whole time he was missing a glaringly big piece of the equation and assuming it was just Severus’s personality.

“You’re not fully infected.” Remus murmured in shock. 

“Is this a joke to you?!” Severus growled, claws digging into his chest so deeply that blood began to well into the wounds. 

“Severus. This isn’t you.” Remus responded calmly even though the wolf within him was snapping and snarling to be released. Fight, it howled, make him submit. You’re stronger.  _ Pure _ . 

Severus let out an inhumane snarl, and Remus could feel the seconds ticking down to nothing. He had to stop him somehow, but if he reached for his wand...   
  


~   
_ ‘Honestly, if he hadn’t kissed me, I would have tried to kill him.’ Selina laughed. ‘I was so shocked it completely knocked me back to sanity! God knows he’s probably washing his mouth out as we speak, we can’t stand each other, and I know he doesn't like boobs.’ _ _  
_ _ ~ _ __  
  


Remus didn’t have time to consider the ramifications, he just made the split second decision and went through with it. If that didn’t work, at least he could buy some time to get his wand out and cast the most powerful ‘ _ incarcerous _ ’ spell he could manage. He grabbed Severus’s face and smashed their mouths together, the force of it splitting his lip on the inside. He quickly pulled back, knowing that the blood would probably send him into an even bigger flurry. 

Two stunned dark brown eyes stared back at him, and he felt relief wash through him as he pushed him back gently and got some space between them. 

“That was my fault. I’m sorry, it was the only thing I could think of to calm you down. It won’t happen again.” Remus held up his hand apologetically. “I thought you had been fully infected, but you weren’t, were you?”

Severus couldn’t hide the disturbed and bewildered expression, his features turning back to normal now that the wolf had been stunned back into submission. “I- what?!”

Remus stood tall; he wasn’t backing down and showing his belly. There was a difference between letting the wolf start a fight and letting the human discuss it calmly. It had been awhile since he had to work with these sorts of dynamics, over two years if he remembered correctly, and so he was a little rusty. 

“I worked with someone in Canada who had this problem.” He admitted calmly, knowing that as long as he didn’t antagonize him, things would remain cordial. “It’s the effects of a half-infection. The wolf is more turbulent around other wolves and nearly non-existent around humans. I regret that I… didn’t take this into account. In my mind you’re…” He looked away, ashamed. “This was my blunder. You’re right, I clearly am not a competent Magical Creature professor if I can’t even notice the signs of a demi-werewolf.”

Severus didn’t look capable of stringing two words together, so Remus took the opportunity to say everything he’d wanted to from the beginning. “I wanted to tell you since the first dose; I felt it wasn’t fair to make you brew the wolfsbane for the man who infected you. Now that I know you’re demi, that makes it worse. You probably already noticed the nausea and anxiety, and it will only get worse until we sort this out. I need to find someone else to make it.” He took in a deep breath and bowed his head. “I’m sorry, Severus. I never meant for this to happen.” He stepped back with the intention of leaving. 

“Wait.” Severus was in front of the door with agility a normal wizard wouldn’t have. “You-” He cut himself off and took in a slow, calming, breath before he continued. “You knew?”

“Of course I knew!” Remus stared at him incredulously. “I could smell it on you the next day! I thought you’d transformed completely, that’s why I was so desperate to  _ apologize _ .”

Severus recoiled at the appearance of honest-to-god tears in Remus’s eyes, feeling significantly off-kilter. 

“I would have never, ever, wanted to inflict this on someone else. You have to believe me. I couldn’t forgive myself  _ or _ the others. Had I known you worked here, I would have never taken the position without contacting you first. You must feel awful with another werewolf here. The wolf is telling you to run me out of your territory, isn’t it?” 

Severus gaped in what he assumed was a very unattractive manner. 

“The aconite will make it worse, I’m afraid. We tried that on my friend, and she went nearly feral with it.”

“Aconite didn’t affect me before.” He admitted slowly. 

“No, but as you know it suppresses a werewolf, and half-infections are unstable to begin with. When it feels its being suppressed and another werewolf is in its territory, it lashes out to protect itself. You’d need way more aconite, nearly toxic levels, to keep it at bay.” He stepped around him, and oh how the tables had turned, because Remus was the one who wanted to leave, and Severus was the one who wanted him to stay so he could get some bloody answers. 

“I’ll try to find the recipe for the tea blend and write to Rosette and ask her for some ideas.”

With that, he was gone. 

And Severus? He was so very, very, confused. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen, listen people... I have plans. So. Many. Plans. But first I need to give Severus a support system, okay? I just can't not do it. 
> 
> Albus being dad figure? Check.  
> Narcissa and Lucius being older siblings? Check.  
> Okay I'm happy now. Continue on. 
> 
> (Holla for the fic title finally being explained. Also fuck Tobias Snape.)


	4. Love Backs Down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: A/N:  
> Aha. ^_^; so I am getting very mixed reviews from you guys, and I’m hoping you continue to enjoy the fic as it is. I finished writing six chapters before I posted so obviously things won’t be affected by reviews until much later. I have also been yelled at by Slytherin who basically said 'JUST WRITE WHAT YOU LIKE AND STOP WORRYING' so I am going to try! 
> 
> Okay so for those of you that guessed Severus was turned and THAT was why Remus was so fucking pissed with his friends… Yay! You get a virtual cookie. (I’m baking tonight because I’m staying up for a night shift tomorrow. Definitely making chocolate chip butterscotch cookies FYI). Not that he didn’t deserve to be furious with them from just Sirius being a twat, but yeah, his worst nightmare came to pass and he infected someone else. Hence he stopped talking to them. 
> 
> So now that I’ve established three chapters of backstory, this is where I start trying to write some romance/sexual tension! Also thank you so much to all y’all who have commented on I Lie in Your Charms and The Flora and Soul Series. I feel like we are all on a little boat as the massive cruise lines pass us by and wave. So glad all twenty of you are on this ship with me! (Even though I’m terrified of open water)

xXx

“Are you _hoping_ I rip your throat out? Is this some sort of suicidal attempt?” Severus didn’t even turn around to see Remus coming in through the door, too busy trying his best not to look at him. 

It was the day that the children were due to arrive at around five pm, and Severus awoke that morning only to realize that he no longer felt like he wanted to crawl out of his own skin. Even seeing Remus from afar didn’t make unspeakable violent thoughts push to the surface. Still, he didn’t tempt fate in trying to push the boundaries, and still kept a careful distance. The sudden lack of aggression was strange in its absence, because he hadn’t even tried this ‘tea’ yet. 

Of course, Remus seemed keen to try and wear down on his fragile patience. He could smell him everywhere; chocolate and sandalwood and something masculine but also what he assumed was the ‘wolf’ smell. Now that Remus knew what he was, he didn’t feel the urge to shove his instincts down. He found that when he wanted to, he could hear and sense Remus coming closer, and that his scent was stronger than Pamona’s herbal one, or Sinestra’s floral perfume. 

He also didn’t know what to do with the knowledge that Remus had kissed him. He tried his best to erase it completely from his thoughts, except all it did was shove its way into the forefront of his mind at the most inopportune times.   
  
The gentle clack of knuts hitting the mahogany of his desk made his stomach squirm. He had said the one thousand galleons to be cruel, but now he was starting to see he had been outmaneuvered. This gave Remus an excuse to come see him, and he did not want to give him any more openings. The bastard was actually quite clever; not that Severus didn’t know that from their school days. If there was anyone who belonged in Ravenclaw, it was Lupin. He was the notorious bookworm of their year, always tutoring people and spending his evenings in the library.   
  
Severus could even argue that turning the insult back around on him was almost Slytherin, if it weren’t for the earnesty in which Remus was trying to mend the rift between them. 

“I have the instructions here.” Remus placed the paper down on the desk and waited patiently until Severus gave up and turned around to look at him. He was wearing a three-piece suit that was clearly well worn, but brought out the gold of his eyes rather strikingly. Severus quickly dropped his gaze to the payment on the desk and the paper right beside it. “Did you want me to go to the greenhouse and stores to grab what you need?” He offered too eagerly. 

“I am fully capable of doing so.” He responded curtly, and then glanced at the ingredients. “In fact, I have most of them here.”

“You do?” 

Lupin didn’t take a fucking hint and leave, no, he followed him into his back storage room and watched as he plucked some dried flowers from the jars and harvested a few more from his tiny little herb set-up. That meant that when he turned around, Lupin was in his way to get out of the room. The storage room felt too small, and he had a vivid image of Remus pushing him up against the wall for some unknown reason. His breath shortened and he had to mentally snap himself out of it.

“Do you need something else?” Severus only asked him once he brushed past and back into his classroom.

“Oh, well, to be honest, I wasn’t sure if you’d trust me, so I thought I’d drink it with you.”

Stupid Lupin and his stupid cleverness, he had to think quickly for a rebuttal. “I see nothing on here that would cause damage to a human nor a wolf. If anything it will taste overly floral.”

“As expected of you, Severus.” Remus’s voice sounded fond, and he was suddenly hit with the urge to throw something at him and demand he leave in a childish fit. He did not like how aware of another body he was becoming. He also didn’t like the idea of becoming ‘sedated’ with Lupin nearby. What if he said something damning? Or worse, Lupin assumed they were bonding?

He followed the instructions with the poise and grace only a potion’s master or herbalist would have, and then felt lacking when he suddenly had nothing to do but watch it steep. 

“It’s actually quite nice, and you won’t have to drink it every night, just when the instincts flare up.” Remus was saying idly. 

“So you plan to keep me sedated and pliable?” Severus couldn’t help but go for the low shot.

“I just don’t want you to be uncomfortable.” Lupin responded, far too accommodating. “We are stuck with one another for a year, after all.”

Severus reluctantly poured two cups of tea and then levitated Remus’s over. The werewolf was sitting with his side facing Severus from the other end of the desk, which he was thankful for. Remus quickly blew on the surface of the brew and took a sip. Severus jolted from his reverie and took a small sip of his own, finding that it wasn’t as terrible as he thought. If anything there were some orange pekoe hints, even though it was purely herbal. They sipped in silence, until Severus could feel the effect start to take place. He relaxed further into his chair, and although he didn’t feel sleepy, he felt artificially content. 

His mind drifted from thought to thought, considering the effects and the lack of panic or nausea that he had felt when he was brewing the wolfsbane. 

“Do you have any questions?” Remus offered softly. “I’m guessing you haven’t met another demi before?”

“I haven’t.” Severus admitted. “But I have met other werewolves. Is it an interaction between specific wolves? An incompatibility?” He didn’t know why that thought made him vaguely uncomfortable. 

Remus nodded patiently. “But they weren’t in the place you consider to be _yours_ , were they? You consider this your home, and so it feels very much like I’m encroaching on that.”

Severus wanted to deny that, but Albus wasn’t there, so what did it matter? 

“Is it helping? You should just feel calm, not drugged.”

“It is sufficient.” Severus admitted. 

“That’s wonderful news.” Remus smiled brightly, tilting his head back against the back of the chair and closing his eyes in contentment. “It makes me rather bubbly, if I’m being honest, sort of like that tipsy feeling you get when you’re drinking. Selina said it wasn’t like that for her. She said it worked more like anti-anxiety medication. It didn’t change her emotions, it just made her more level-headed." 

“If you’re looking for some sort of heart to heart, you will not get one.” Severus felt like he didn’t really mean it, but had to say it in principle. 

“With this you should be able to come to the great halls for meals.” Remus continued as if Severus hadn’t spoken in between. 

Lupin was still leaning back in the chair, and Severus was having a hard time focusing on anything else when his eyes landed on the pulse in his neck. Was this a residual effect? Was he focusing on his blood pumping but the urge to maim him was covered by the tea so instead he was just… staring at his neck? He mused about fastening his teeth around his neck and something sparked up and then settled back down. That must be it; the tea couldn’t completely negate all bloodlust. He closed his eyes.

“Obviously I won’t be around here forever.” Remus had a terrible habit of not letting there be silence, apparently. “There are other options if you end up with werewolf students in the future.”

Severus rolled his eyes behind his lids. “I am only teaching until Albus finds a replacement. I don’t have the patience for dealing with children long-term.”

“Oh.” He heard Remus shift. “Are… Are you sure?”

He waved him off. “I’m certainly not going to fight you over who will stay after this year. This whole ‘territory’ thing is ridiculous.” Even though he said that, he couldn’t quite come right out and say Remus could have Hogwarts. Werewolf instincts were so exhausting.

His brain stuttered back and replayed Lupin’s words. “Other options?” He parroted pointedly. 

“Mmhmm.” Remus hummed, taking another sip and getting far too comfy for his tastes. “Werewolves are pack creatures, and like stability and family nearby. If you had someone else in your ‘pack’ here...” He put quotations around the word. “You’ll feel less territorial. Selina found that out by coincidence when she adopted her late sister’s son. Although I suppose that’s not exactly a simple fix considering your family would have to move here with you...”

Severus didn’t speak for a long moment, mind whirling in both embarrassment and offence.   
  
“It doesn’t have to be a werewolf.” Remus was trying to assure him. “Selina’s son is completely human. Although Rosette did wish she had someone else to make a case study out of, and see if a mate would cause the wolf to get jealous easier, or transfer the territorialism into possessiveness.” He was now just musing out loud. 

“And I suppose you plan to use me as some sort of lab rat?” He sneered. 

“Hm? Oh, no.” Remus didn’t rise to the bait at all. “It’s just another option you can keep in the back of your mind. Selina was insanely strong and tactical as well. No one in her tribe could best her and make her surrender. Rosette wasn’t willing to risk anyone getting hurt to try it out more than twice, either.” 

Severus shifted, trying desperately to keep his mind from turning that into something more dark and sexual. He put his cup down decidedly and stood up. 

“I no longer want to murder you just from seeing your face, and so I will call this a success, now, are you finished rambling so I may continue my work?”

“Oh, yes, of course!” Remus jumped up. “Sorry about that. I’ll see you at the welcome feast, then.”

Severus did a great job making it through the entrance ceremony and settling the new Slytherin’s into their dormitories. He ignored Remus’s presence, thankful that he was sitting on the exact opposite of the head table, probably due to Albus’s request. He felt better than he had in ages, although he would never admit it, and went to sleep that night feeling a tiny bit of hope. Now that he wasn’t feeling like he was two seconds away from reacting violently, he could resume his normal routine. 

Of course, his subconscious didn't see fit to give him a break. 

_He had dark, shadowed dreams about running in the forest. He could sense he was being chased, but the feeling wasn’t dread or fear, it was excitement. It wasn’t the forbidden forest, but something softer, bathed in blue moonbeams. He felt a strange exhilaration, body and mind fluctuating between wolf and human, even though he had never changed forms before. He could smell the damp earth and foliage, like the rain had just come and gone._

_He ran through the shallow part of a river, the cool water refreshing on his warm, fur-covered body. There was a childish sort of wonder and happiness to the emotion. He remembered feeling this only a few times before, and even though flashes of Lily passed through his mind, it didn’t make him sad, nor did it change the projection of the dream._

_Suddenly he was submerged in the water, someone tripping and pushing him down. He was no longer a wolf, but human, shuddering and letting out a shout of surprise when the water soaked him all the way through. The water was only a foot high, and so he was able to sit up and attempt to push his sopping wet bangs from his face. Warmth settled down onto his lap before he could get his bearings and stand up, the sound of a low laughter close enough that he could feel it on his face. He still couldn’t seem to get his bangs out of his eyes before warm hands grabbed his face and lips pressed against his._

“ _I win_.”

xXx 

"Andrews!" Severus snapped, watching as the Hufflepuff nearly dropped a full container of salamander blood into her cauldron. "What would have happened if you had _actually_ added quadruple the amount?!"

Andrews sighed in clear resignment. "It would have shrunk the cauldron down and melted it…"

"Exactly." He glared down at her. "Be. More. Careful."

"Shouldn't he give her points for even knowing that?" He heard one of the other badgers murmur on the other side of the room. 

"Five points from Hufflepuff." He declared, and then turned away and stalked back to his desk. Even he knew this bad mood was affecting his teaching; Andrews was a second year with promising talents in Potions. The only downside was she sometimes managed to royally screw up in the practical due to her clumsy tendencies. 

She hadn't even succeeded in doing so this class, but he still felt annoyed watching her fumble with the vial. Honestly he had thoughts about casting sticking charms on her hands once a class. She dropped her quill, her ink pot, her bag, her potions text, and sometimes his extremely pricey and hard to obtain ingredients. He had never met someone who was so smart but so annoyingly bumbling before. 

He pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to control his breathing. This wasn’t doing _anything_ good for his already shredded nerves. He wasn't agitated from the wolf anymore, no, this was all thanks to the godforsaken dreams he was having. Last night's rendition was enough to make him want to scream and turn various shades of mortified pink with just the barest recollection. 

Severus was going to fucking murder him. He would go back to the constant rage if it meant he didn't have to deal with this psychological torture. He just _had_ to go about kissing him for a distraction and talking about surrendering and mates. Severus was convinced this was purposeful, and the Gryffindor was actually playing some sort of mental warfare. To think that _he_ was the Slytherin, and Lupin was a part of the lacking-in-impulse-control lions. Severus didn’t wish to look at it too closely, but he almost felt as though their roles were reversed. Then again, lion’s were known to stalk their prey... 

“Oh, bugger it all.” He grumbled beneath his breath after he’d dismissed his second-year Hufflepuff/Slytherin class. 

He hadn't needed the tea in over a week since his initial dose, and he would be damned if he broke down and asked how often he should be taking it. That would mean he would have to speak to Lupin, and he was pretty sure he would hex him on the spot just for the audacity of invading his dreams unwarranted. He took his meals in the Great Hall and waited for the rage to start simmering again like before. The only thing that simmered was his annoyance at his own bodily reactions. Never had he been so _aware_ of one specific person. 

Yes. He was going to kill Lupin in cold blood. 

xXx

"Severus?" 

"What?!" He hissed, drawing his wand and glaring at the object of his turmoil. Why did he have to go and say his _name_ like that? 

"Did you need more ingredients for the tea?" Remus looked bewildered at the ferocious response, holding up his hands in a calm, non threatening manner. "I made some myself and I can bring it to you-" 

The litany of curses that wanted to come from his mouth would have made Dumbledore blanche, but he held them back by a thread. 

"I am fine, Lupin. What do you want?" He asked through gritted teeth.

Lupin moved closer and he had to start breathing through his mouth shallowly. He clenched his fists until his nails bit into the skin when the Magical Creatures professor lowered his voice. "I wanted to talk to you about a student, but perhaps not here." His whiskey coloured eyes glanced around at the students trying to pretend they weren't eavesdropping in the west wing corridor. "I will meet you in your office to discuss it after dinner. I'll be there around seven o'clock."

"That is unnecessary." He told him coldly. "Just write it down- _Lupin_."

Remus was already turning the corner, pretending he didn't hear the response.

“Are you alright, professor?” 

Severus blinked down at the second-year Slytherin; one of the only children less than fifteen that wasn’t terrified of him somehow. She blinked up at him with overly-eager blue eyes, which never dimmed even when he was his most callous. He had a feeling she took secret joy in watching him insult people. 

“Do not be late for your next class, Miss Rosier.” He drawled, and then proceeded to terrorize the fourth year Gryffindor-Ravenclaw class for some retribution. Despite knocking down the most annoying Gryffindors a peg or two, he was not at all prepared for Lupin to knock on his door a few short hours later. 

“Good evening, Severus.” 

Lupin looked hesitant to enter, which suited him just fine. He lifted his gaze from his marking to give him an annoyed glance. 

“Are you going to haunt my doorway, or are you going to explain what has to be said in person and not through a letter?” He groused. 

“Well, it’s a delicate topic.” Lupin closed the door behind himself and muttered a quiet modified _callocorpus_. “It involves a third-year Ravenclaw by the name of Darien.”

Severus raised a brow at him in clear mocking. “His _surname_?”

“Do you honestly-?” Lupin sighed. “ _Darien_ Lacroix.”

“Ah, Lacroix, abysmal at potions, but at least he follows direction.” He sniffed and glanced back down at his marking. 

Lupin crossed the room so he was standing right in front of his desk, looming over him like some sort of overbearing tree. “He is the target of some pretty vicious bullying.”

“Then speak to the bully’s head of house.” He responded dismissively. 

“I _am_.” Lupin crossed his arms across his chest. “I have already spoken to Minerva, and since you are acting as Head of Slytherin, I am also coming to you. Not to mention the matter concerns you personally.”

“How so?” He asked dryly. 

“Well, Mr. Lacroix is being bullied for defending _you_.” 

If it weren’t for the subject matter, the voice in which Lupin spoke definitely caught his attention. “Explain.”

“I just did. Darien defended you in the hallway outside my classroom, and was subjected to two Gryffindor and three Slytherin mocking him for it. They have not left him alone, and I have already handed out detentions for tomorrow evening, but I know it’s worse where we cannot see.”

“Then you’ve already done more than you ever did in school.” Severus said meanly. 

“Severus, this is serious. This boy clearly respects you and it’s your own students that are bullying him for it!”

“I don’t see a point in him defending me; children are cruel and entirely uncreative, so I am sure I have heard the worst their miniscule brains can come up with. It will die down eventually.” He waved off his concern. “If I see them in action, be assured I will punish them accordingly.”

“Don’t you even want to know-”

“-Not in any facet.” He cut him off. “I am aware of what people say about me, and as you recall, I can take care of myself just fine without you or some Ravenclaw _child_ trying to defend my honour.”

Lupin looked beyond frustrated, which he found extremely satisfying, before adding: “Please close the door behind you.”

“This is about the _children_.” The other professor snapped. “Not your stubbornness or instincts telling you to antagonize me.”

Severus had enough, standing up as his lips curled back in a sneer. “Simply because I do not exhibit Hufflepuff tendencies when you open your mouth, does not mean this is some lycanthropy-induced ploy for dominance.” He rebuked cuttingly. “How would you know if I am or am not taking the tea, Lupin? You think I’d agree with your nosey behaviour if I had?”   
  
“Well maybe if a professor stepped in when James and Sirius decided to target you, then we wouldn’t be in this current situation!” Lupin slammed his hands down on the desk and they both coiled. “You have a chance to stop the cycle from continuing, and _I_ will keep Hale, Jones, and Kupta in detention all year if I have to. I suppose you’ll only care if it’s a _Gryffindor_ causing mischief.”

Then Lupin turned around and had the audacity to slam his office door. 

xXx

“What’s the matter, Lacroix? No one wants to sit near you now that they know you have a hard-on for Snape?”

Severus should have just kept walking straight. The altercation was down the hallway he was approaching on his right, and he probably wouldn’t have tuned in if it weren’t for the mention of the name Lacroix. He was nearing the courtyard, and when he finally did pass by he was annoyed to find the three boys Lupin warned him about standing in a semi-circle around a lone Ravenclaw. Lacroix was sitting on the ledge, books strewn out around him in mid-study session. Hale slapped one of the books off the ledge and sat down himself, putting his muddy shoes up onto Lacroix’s notes. 

Lacroix was half-Indian, half-British with startling blue eyes, honestly he wasn’t the worst looking of his year, but he was notoriously quiet. Meanwhile Hale reminded him far too much of the Black family, with his pale skin but silky black hair and haughty features. Jones was the mean one; a blond who enjoyed hexing and harassing his peers with nasty tricks that he could plead innocent if someone tried to blame him. Kupta was the brains of the team, quick to switch directions if he noticed that they were being watched. 

Fortunately for Lacroix, all three boys had their backs to Severus as he approached. 

“What’s the matter? You were chatty yesterday, wasn’t he, Jones? Going on about how-” He paused here to put on a simpering effeminate tone to his words. “-Professor Snape is just misunderstood, he’s so _handsome_ and-”

“-As much as I enjoy this disturbing slew of compliments, Hale, I am afraid you are far too young and _pathetic_ for my tastes.” Regardless of their house, he enjoyed watching the colour drain from their faces as the three of them startled and spun around to stare at him in horror. “Or do you perhaps believe it is appropriate to harass your peer who has surpassed your marks in most subjects? Is this an act of jealousy?”

“Oh, professor.” Kupta put on his best facade, one that could thaw even Minerva on a bad day.

“I am not interested in your excuses, Kupta. Ten points each from Slytherin, and all three of you will serve detention for a week with Filch. Then perhaps you will understand the words ‘misunderstood’. Move. Along.”

The three of them scampered off immediately, and Severus rounded on Lacroix. “Keep your head down and focus on your studies. Heaven knows you need it in my class.”

“Yes, Professor.”

xXx

_The moon is full and bright in the sky, drawing his gaze to its splendor. He doesn't remember why he is on his back in the field of aconite, but there's something important about the purple flowers he can't quite bring forth from the catacombs of his mind. He turns his head and traces along one of the petals, a bolt of panicked surprise rushing through him when it blooms spectacularly and then withers and dies almost immediately after. He feels like his legs are made of cement, but he manages to get sitting up with some effort._

_He glances down and finds himself in white and silver robes, with the sleeves ending just after his elbows. He takes a moment to marvel at the fact that his arms are pure and untouched by scars nor markings. He feels younger, strangely hopeful, and with that knowledge, standing is easier._

_The clearing is unlike one he has ever seen at Hogwarts and elsewhere. Flowers stretch on until they reach a forest line filled with bioluminescent trees. He has always found nature to be rather soothing, although he will admit that to no one. Pomona would have a field day if she knew he enjoyed gardening and walking amongst the trees._

_"It's beautiful, isn't it?"_

_The voice should fill him with dread or frustration, but instead it fills him with confusion._

_"What are you doing here?" He asks. "You should be transformed."_

_Remus Lupin’s eyes are so vividly golden it's hard to look away. Logically, he would have seen him cross the field, or heard him, but somehow Remus is right in front of him in the span of seconds._

_"Not tonight." He holds up his hands and hovers them over Severus's wrists that are still outstretched in front of him. "It's special. Can't you feel it?"_

_"Feel what?" He asks, bewildered._

_"This." Remus lowers his hands and the sensation is warm, but the sight of his skin bursting with a pearl-like sheen where Remus's fingertips trace his veins is distracting. Remus brushes his hands up to the edge of his sleeves, and then they hesitate. "I always wanted it to be you."_

_He wants to ask 'what' with equal parts trepidation and wonder._

_Remus doesn't answer, his hands travel further up over his robes, and he watches as the material turns golden under his hands, trailing up to his shoulders and then down to frame his sternum. The golden shimmer making two handprints on either side of his chest. He can't seem to move to push him away, nervous for what he expects will happen next._

_"I wonder what would happen if I kissed you?" Remus muses, but he doesn't lean in despite how Severus's breath catches in his throat._

_Remus steps in a little closer and his hands move to start undoing buttons casually, each one turning gold as he moves them down Severus's chest. He is wearing a feather-light shirt underneath, but when the robes fall from his shoulders he feels distinctly naked. Remus tilts forward and his pulse picks up when Remus's lips brush his jugular._

_"Aconite." Severus realizes abruptly, apropos of nothing._

_"Mmhmm." Remus returns distracted, and then bites down on his neck hard enough to draw blood. Severus's strength gives out but hands are holding him up as Remus pulls his teeth out of the indentation._

_"You can't run away now."_

_His voice sounds far away, like they're underneath water. He feels his whole world tilt, and then he is lying on his back once again. His eyes are drawn back to the full moon as the warm hands slide his shirt up and begin kissing down his chest. His neck hurts like a burn, and he knows if he touches it his fingers will come away bloody._

_Remus mouths across his stomach and he feels the telltale swoop of arousal in his pelvis._

_"You want this." It's not a question, but a statement._

_He looks down just as Remus starts to remove his own clothing, but the moon is so strong it blurs him around the edges. He can't make out much detail, but he knows what is about to happen. Hands are back on him again, but the rest of his clothes are gone. He is suddenly hotly embarrassed by the whole thing and turns on his side to hide._

_He becomes acutely aware of a throbbing inside that wasn't important before, but surges up now when Remus slides up behind him. He is everywhere; pressed up against his back, hands tracing his thighs, chest, and sides, and breath warm as he nuzzles against his shoulder. Just when he thinks he is going to combust from the inside out, something is stretching him wide and it chokes the breath out of him. It doesn't hurt, but it's intense, and it is a soothing balm on the pulsing inside. He needs more of it, an instinct releasing from somewhere buried down. The feeling of someone rocking into him slow and steady is addictive and mind numbing. He knows he isn't meant to come from this, but it's still freeing in its own way. There's an impatient human part of him that wants the release, but the wolf wants-_

His hand is on himself before he is even fully aware, chasing the sensations of the dream. He reaches a peak in only a few strokes, but the ache inside him isn't satisfied at all. 

That's when Severus actually wakes up. 


	5. Bad Blood

xXx

"Thank you both for meeting me here. I know with the baby…" He trailed off, thankful that the pub was at least somewhat empty of its normal crowd of students. 

"It's alright, Remus. Brings up memories, doesn't it, Lil?" 

Lily nodded, pulling her wand out to cast a series of privacy spells to Harry's screeching of delight. She smiled down at her son fondly, and Remus was glad to see James had finally figured out how to use the wrap. He wondered if he finally gave in and let Lily do it for him, or if he stubbornly worked it out on his own. 

"You have certainly had a busy start to your school year." James hedged jokingly. "It took you less than a week to get into a fight with Snape?"

Remus felt a pang of pain at the reminder, hanging his head in shame as he recalled the embarrassing display of negligence on his part. 

"I don't know what I expected." He admitted forlornly. 

"He will come around." Lily offered firmly. "At the very least you two can be civil while you teach together. You've done what you can."

Neither Lily nor James knew the full extent of what had transpired; he felt it wasn't his place to tell them that Severus was a demi-werewolf. He had already told Selina and Rosette out of bare necessity, but it would be a breach of trust to tell Lily something that Severus could tell her on his own. Severus may already have done so, but he didn't want to pry. Instead he told them that he had tried to speak to Severus with disastrous results. 

"I just feel awful." Remus groaned. "I was so excited for this opportunity and now I feel like I'm making his life more difficult by just _existing_."

James was playing with Harry's arms, waving them to and fro to make his son gurgle and wiggle against his chest happily. Remus was distracted temporarily with how well Harry was doing. He was already getting more dark hair, and his eyes were open wide with wonder.

"How are classes, though?" James avoided the obvious jibe there, and tried to distract him. 

"I am finding it very rewarding." Remus gushed humbly, thankful to switch gears. "The children are so excited in second year that it makes it fun. I wish I didn't have to assign homework, though. I don't know how anyone enjoys marking all the papers."

"I dunno, I'd drink half a bottle of firewhiskey and make a game of it, personally." James chuckled. 

"I wish." Remus leaned back in his seat to stretch out his tired neck. "Drunk professors are generally frowned upon." 

"I don't know how anyone could have remained sober after dealing with us. Remember how many times we were caught out of bed after hours?" James grinned. 

"I still don't know how I can look Minerva in the face most days." 

"Honestly." Lily clicked her tongue and rolled her eyes good naturedly. 

"Hey I grew up! Tell her Moony! I even have a son!"

"Siring a child does not make you suddenly mature, Prongs." Remus chuckled. "Sometimes I still feel like I need someone to make decisions for me. Last year I was getting drunk on elven wine and losing at strip chess by a campfire. This year I am molding the minds of the next generation."

"I'm sorry, did the words 'strip chess' just come out of your mouth?!" James demanded gleefully. 

"In the middle of a Canadian winter." Remus couldn't help but tack on, smiling at the delighted peals of laughter from both his childhood friends. "Once the alcohol wore off I feared I would never be able to feel warm again."

"Here I had these visions of you being all scholarly and serious as you bested the vicious Canadian creatures with your wit!" James cackled. "Turns out you're just as much of a git as the rest of us."

"I am friends with you, aren't I?" Which made James nearly snort his butterbeer out of his nose. 

"I'm glad you had fun over there, Remus." Lily looked genuinely relieved. "I had always worried about you."

"Ah, well…" Remus scratched the nape of his neck nervously. "It was difficult at first…"

"Talk about killing the mood!" James chastised his wife. "Come on, Moony, go back to talking about your sloshed shenanigans."

"Well, I have to admit it took me awhile to get to that point." Remus felt like he was in for a pound at this point. They hadn't quite breached the topic of sixth year, and he may as well rip off the bandage while he had the opportunity. "I wasn't in a good place when I left England. I think I needed some time away to process things."

"Yeah, that was why I didn't try to contact you right away." James recalled. "At your dad's funeral I could tell you needed space."

"You… came to that?" Remus's head snapped up to stare at him in surprise. 

"Yeah, we snuck in the back." James smiled at him sadly. "We weren't sure if you even noticed. I'm sorry, by the way. Your dad was a great man."

"He… really was." Remus forced out around the lump in his throat. "It means a lot that you were there, even if I was too wrapped up in myself to notice."

"I'm glad that you were able to find something worthwhile to pursue after." Lily told him earnestly. "You clearly love it."

"I do." Remus agreed softly. "But I missed many things because of it. I didn't attend your wedding…"

"Nah, mate. You were there in spirit. I know you would have if we'd just apologized sooner." James ran a hand through his artfully messy hair and then squared his shoulders resolutely. "I was a shit friend. After the full moon incident, you had every right to be pissed. Instead we just ignored it, and then your father died…" He trailed off, looking contrite. Lily put her hand on her husband's arm supportively, and Remus was once again thankful for her intervention. "I was impatient for things to go back to what they were, but that was daft. I never noticed how great of a friend you were until you wouldn't talk to us. I lost the right to expect you to drop everything and come play groomsman. So, I guess what I’m trying to say is, I'm sorry, Remus. For what happened in school, and for how I acted after." 

Remus couldn't help but feel shocked at his words, heart aching in mixed emotions. He felt silly that he had thought so poorly of James before his return. He had been so blind, so caught up in himself. Now that he was hearing all the things he had always needed to hear to forgive him, he felt like all the pain and anguish could have been avoided. If he had just called them out, told them how he really felt, they may have avoided this whole mess to begin with. 

"I should have said something-"

"Remus, take the apology." Lily cut in, exasperated. "James is admitting he was wrong, don't take this away from me. They are fleeing enough moments already."

"Hey!"

"Thank you. Both of you. It's been… difficult. Every time I look at Severus I feel so guilty…"

Lily began plucking at the wrap, ignoring James squawk of annoyance. She lifted Harry into her arms and then handed him over to a bewildered, but touched, Remus. 

"Babies have a way of making things better." She offered in explanation. 

"They really do." Remus's heart fluttered when Harry settled into his arms without fuss. If something so pure could trust him so implicitly, it made the darkest parts he hated about himself seem so insignificant. 

"You can always come re-energize if you need it. I'll be glad to get out of diaper changing and feeding duty for an hour." James offered. "It's just us all day until Lily gets home at four. _If_ she gets home."

"Oh hush. I brought you candy as an apology."

"How dare you madam! Exposing my weaknesses so blatantly!"

Remus left feeling lighter than he had in weeks. Not once did they mention Sirius, nor did they expect him to be anything but himself. He made tentative plans to visit them the next weekend so he could sneak away from the castle for a few hours. Perhaps during a Hogsmeade trip when the school was relatively empty. The walk back to Hogwarts was serene, and he dallied much longer than he should have considering the sheer amount of marking he had to do. 

Fall had set in rather spectacularly; everything turning shades of bronze. The full moon felt eons away, and he was instead looking forward to the Halloween festivities in the castle. It wasn’t a secret to anyone that Albus loved sweets, and the headmaster declared at their most recent faculty meeting that he had plans for the holiday. 

Perhaps it was thanks to his good mood that he was glancing around into the fields and trees leading up to Hogwarts castle. He probably wouldn’t have noticed him if not for his sight seeing, but his gaze was drawn to a lone tree that retained most of its green leaves and the dark figure beneath it. He slowed to a stop, his curiosity getting the better of him, as Severus reached up into the branches of the tree. Remus winced, hoping that he wasn’t seriously considering-

Oh, he was.

Remus knew yelling would do nothing but startle the fairies further, but he quickened his pace as much as he could to cross the field before they started to swarm. 

Except the fairies didn’t swarm, no, they did something altogether more interesting. About ten of them flew down from the tree and settled across his shoulders and head, burrowing into his hair and chittering at him. Remus watched nervously; he knew first hand how cruel and sharp their little claws and teeth were. Fairies were extremely vain, and they did not like anyone to come within ten feet of their nests, especially at this time of year. It was their shedding season, which was probably why Severus had targeted them in the first place; fairy wings were incredibly valuable for potion making. 

Remus forced his pace into something more casual. If the fairies trusted him, then that was a miracle in itself. He could hear their buzzing increase in intensity as Severus grabbed one of them and lifted her to his eye level. 

“Gaint oaf…” Severus was murmuring to himself, the words catching on the breeze every so often for Remus to hear. “...Easier in the first place.” 

Then he plucked her left wing right from her body and she let out a screech. 

She was writhing in his hand and suddenly a smaller wing burst forth, making her flutter around lopsided in clear agitation. “Well get back here then and we will make it even!” He snatched her out of the air and did the same with the other one. “There, you looked terrible.” 

The other fairies giggled cruelly, making the target huff and fly off back into the tree, looking drunk since she wasn’t used to her new appendages. 

“Who is next?” Severus asked a little meanly to the others, surveying them critically. They all started to roughhouse with one another; they were vindictive little buggers and enjoyed proving who was more superior. They would sell out their friends so long as they were the last ‘pretty’ one, but that was only in a playful situation. If they thought they were in danger, they would rally together and fight as a unit. 

Suddenly the fairies went quiet and stopped trying to scapegoat each other into Severus’s awaiting palm.

They’d noticed Remus. 

“Buzz!” One of them flew right for him and he forced himself to remain still. The first thing people normally did was swat at them when they got up into their faces, and that signalled to the rest of the nest to come to their aid. Instead, he lifted his hand with the palm up and cooed at the fairy gently. 

“Aren’t you a handsome one?” He praised. “Looking out for your friends, are you? What a good nestmate you are.” 

The fairy landed in his hand and gave him a distrustful look, sneering at him but also tilting his little head as if beckoning more compliments. 

“Look at your wings, they’re new, aren’t they? Very fine indeed.” 

The fairy preened, showing off said wings haughtily. 

Instead of acknowledging his presence, Severus returned his attention to the ones closest to him, checking to see if their wings were ready to be removed. 

"Sorry, I thought they were going to swarm you." Remus admitted nervously. He had been treading carefully since the conversation about the student, but he reasoned that he would have come running if he thought fairies were going to swarm _anyone_. Now that he saw the other man was alright, he felt safe in turning around. He would like to stay and talk a bit more, ask him some more about this nest of fairies and if he'd harvested from them before. Instead he backed up a few steps with the intention of leaving him be. 

“They remember me.” Severus murmured at last, halting Remus in his footsteps. “From when I attended Hogwarts.”

Remus perked up at the explanation. “Their parents, you mean? Perhaps even grandparents.” He smiled, endeared. “It happens, sometimes. The young learn to trust based on watching the others. Over time you would have been seen as someone safe and no one would really question it unless you did something to hurt one of them.”

“Yes, I’m aware of how generational survival tactics work, thank you.” There was a clear lack of bite in his words, and Remus shifted in discomfort. 

“Are… You well?” He asked awkwardly. Did Severus want him to stay? Or should he go? “You seem…”

“Tired? Always.” He cut him off ruefully. 

This close, he could see the pale of his cheeks and the hollows underneath his eyes. There was also a faint sickly stressed scent, and his gut clenched in distress. 

“Is it the wolf?” Remus pressed. “Severus, please, I don’t want to make you sick. Is it the tea? Has it been working? Are you allergic to one of the ingredients? I didn’t think to even check…” He stepped closer without thinking so he could get a better look. 

“BUZZ!” One of the fairies from under his hair came out with a vengeance, gnashing her little teeth at him. 

“Wow, she’s quite protective over you.” Remus murmured, lifting his hands up and showing the fairy he didn’t mean her ‘friend’ any harm. 

“Lyra.” Severus called her, his voice exhausted. 

Lyra went and petulantly sat on his shoulder, but she glared at Remus hatefully. She was quite beautiful; coloured blues and purples with white little spots. She looked almost like the night sky, which explained the celestial name. 

“She can sense you’re upset.” Remus pointed out. 

“Astute observation.” Severus replied with a little bit of his normal bite back, but he wouldn’t _look_ at him. 

Remus let out a weary sigh and rubbed at his face stressfully. 

“I spent all of seventh year thinking how terrible you must feel, how I’d turned you into a monster, how you didn’t deserve it. I know you hate me; you have every right to do so. I didn't stop my friends back then, and I never meant to encroach on your space here now. I know it's my own selfishness- thinking that if I make you feel better it will absolve my own mistakes.” He looked down at his feet, ashamed. “Just, don’t hurt yourself more on my account. Go see your family- I promise you it will help to take some time away, and familial ties make the wolf more steady. I’ll try to be scarce next weekend, and maybe we can work out a system that will make things more bearable for you.” 

Severus watched his retreating back, feeling significantly off-kilter. “How pathetic.” He grumbled, but his heart wasn’t in it. “The bastard belonged in Hufflepuff, good lord...”

xXx

Severus didn’t have a ‘family’, not in the most traditional sense of the word anyways. He had a godson, an overbearing headmaster, and two school-day acquaintances who forcefully indoctrinated him into their life. His mother was long dead, and he didn’t care to know exactly what killed her. The coroner ruled it as a suicide, but the police did mention there was a reason so suspect otherwise. What mattered was, shortly after, the man who spent the majority of his childhood berating him and his mother left.

Still, the air around Hogwarts was as stifling as ever, and so he found himself at Malfoy Manor one Saturday morning enjoying a late breakfast with Narcissa. He floo-called the previous evening and she seemed overly eager to give him some time with his godson. He had a feeling she was going to use this opportunity to sneak off and see her sister, although he had no idea why she thought she needed to hide it from him of all people. 

Lucius was, of course, working.

“What will you two do today?” Narcissa asked as she carefully placed Draco into his stylish fall coat and pressed an indulgent kiss on his head of soft downy-blond hair. 

“Perhaps some shopping.” He considered, and then felt the telltale prickle of magic as a doe patronus came galloping into the sitting room in all its majestic splendor. 

“Sending off a social call. I have Harry today and wanted to see if you could get away for a visit.” Lily’s sweet voice spoke directly into his ear.

“A friend?” Narcissa raised a perfect brow at him. “I don’t mind if you take Draco to see someone, just make sure they’re child-friendly.”

“She has a son.” He assured her, mouth twisting while he considered his options. Draco hadn’t met anyone else his age yet, not that he did much real interacting, and Severus had yet to meet Harry. 

“Evans, then?” Narcissa passed Draco over to him so she could wrap her silver scarf around her pale neck. “You haven’t spoken of her since school.”

“We have gotten in touch.” He admitted a bit awkwardly. 

“Whatever you decide, take care. I’m off.”

Severus tucked Draco into his arms and surveyed the fireplace thoughtfully. He took out his own wand and focused on the first time he successfully made a complex potion on his own in Hogwarts. “ _Expecto Patronum._ ” 

An arctic fox leapt from the end of his wand, and he leaned down to give it careful instructions. 

xXx

“Oh my goodness, look at that hair!” Lily cooed in delight. “It’s nearly white!”

Draco was giving Lily the strangest look, like he couldn’t decide if he was disgruntled or accepting of her gently patting his head. He was nearly four months old, and hadn’t quite learned stranger danger or separation anxiety. Severus figured it was because several people handled him any given week, including and not limited to: the house elves, his grandparents, parents, and Severus himself. He had worried that Draco would forget him since they hadn’t seen each other in over a month, but that fear proved unwarranted. 

“Yours certainly is a Potter.” Severus blinked down at the still squishy face of Harry, only two months old and unable to do much but open and close his eyes and move his mouth around. Draco at least was starting to develop a personality.

They were sitting outside under the umbrella of a cafe in Muggle London. The weather was surprisingly warm for the beginning of October, and so they decided to spend one of the last nice days outdoors. Lily had Harry in his pram, but Severus opted to take Draco out and have him sitting on his lap. The Malfoy heir didn’t like remaining still for too long, and would start to fuss if he was left lying down while things were happening outside. 

Lily held her hands out expectantly. “May I?”

Severus lifted Draco up. “If he allows it.”

“Come here, little one.” She babbled gently, and then lowered the top of the pram and leaned Draco in. “Look, he’s a baby just like you. Do you think you can be friends?”

Draco blinked down at Harry in clear confusion, and then reached out his chubby little hand and yanked on Harry’s hair. Hard.

“Oh, dear.” Lily sighed as Harry began to scream. 

Severus took Draco back while Lily soothed her son, He wrestled the remaining strands of Harry’s hair out from between Draco’s little fingers. “And the house divide begins.”

Lily lifted Harry out and into her arms, unable to hold back her amusement at the comment. “Maybe, but I think starting them young will help.” She rocked Harry back and forth, muttering that Draco didn’t mean it, and he was alright. “Besides, I always kind of thought James had some more Slytherin tendencies, maybe Harry will end up there?”

Severus gave her a disgruntled look. “Please never say such horrific things again.”

Lily laughed heartily. “Just imagine if they switched. That would serve you and James right; your godson a noble little firecracker and my son a cunning little strategist.”

“I’d rather he end up in Ravenclaw and avoid this whole mess.”

Lily shot him an affectionate look. “How is work, by the way? I’m still so surprised that you decided to go back another year.”

Severus’s face turned sour. He moved the cutlery from Draco’s reach, much to the little blond’s displeasure, and spoke over his frustrated grunts. “Children are annoying and I have little patience for teaching them the delicate art of potion’s making. It is only compounded by your husband’s pet werewolf making life infinitely more difficult.”

Lily let the comment slide, but she gave him a warning look. “You mentioned that you were half-infected and that’s causing some strain?”

“It’s never been a problem before now.” Severus admitted, annoyed. “It apparently has to do with territory and some such bilge.”

“You literally cannot help having a pissing match, can you?” Lily sighed. 

“He wouldn’t leave well enough alone! Always on about apologies and instincts-” He paused. “Your son just threw up.”

“Harry!” Lily quickly leaned down to try and grab a receiving blanket to wipe him off, but Draco’s was closer. He handed it over and she took it thankfully. “You’re such a little mess, young man.”

“He takes after his father.” He couldn’t help himself. 

“Oh, shut it. Next time I’ll make him toss up on you.”

“It won’t be the first time a child has vomited on me, unfortunately.” He drawled. 

“Either way, I’ll tell Remus to back off. I should have told him to begin with, but, well… He’s had a hard time ignoring you since sixth year.” The look on her face meant something implied, but Severus couldn’t be sure what she was trying to convey with that. “You do know he just wants to make things better, right? This isn’t some Slytherin ploy to get your guard down. He’s not like that.”

“Ha!” He snorted in disbelief. “I wouldn’t be so sure…”

“Sev, come on. It’s Remus; he would apologize for _breathing_ if he could.”

“He already has.” Severus grumbled. 

“See? He just wants to do right by you.”

“Unlike you, I do not find nosey Gryffindors to be even remotely attractive.”

She opened and closed her mouth in both offense and hilarity. “Okay, you get one cheap shot like that, Sev, and then I’m going for the jugular. You know I will.”

He made a non-committal hum and she couldn’t help but smile. It was nice to speak to him again. She missed his wicked sense of humor, and honestly, seeing him healthy and grown up really did make her heart soar. She knew first hand how terrible things had been for him when they were younger, and wondered what had happened in those years in between. She knew Severus became one of the youngest potion masters in the United Kingdom, but she had no idea about his personal life. 

“You know, I think James really started to change at the end of sixth year.” She admitted thoughtfully. “I wouldn’t have given him a chance if he hadn’t. He actually left me alone for a while, and I guess I was starting to think he’d finally given up. Then one night out of the blue he started confiding in me, and well, you and I weren’t talking, and he and Remus weren’t talking…” She blinked out of her daze at the stormy look in his eyes. “Don’t give me that, I’m not going to pretend we didn’t fight, Sev.”

He looked like he wanted to argue, but ultimately decided against it. “I suppose.”

“If we are going to be friends, you don’t need to like James, but you need to respect that he is my husband.” She reminded him. “I know he’s not exactly your type of person.”

Severus didn’t comment on the first part, but he raised a brow at her. “And you think you know what kind of ‘person’ would suit me?”

“Well…” She looked down at the top of Harry’s head and smiled secretively. “I always imagined, if you decided you wanted a relationship, you would need someone who is sweet to you. You deserve it.”

He made a disgusted noise. “How incredibly _boring_.”

She stuck out her tongue at him childishly. “Kind and boring are not synonyms! You are so ridiculous sometimes.” She tilted her head haughty. “Besides, they’d counteract your snarkiness.”

“I don’t think Potter helped _you_ with that.” He shot back triumphantly, and then began to bounce Draco on his lap, reaching into his own carriage and grabbing his toy to distract him with. He was stubborn, and wouldn’t stop trying to get the fork from the table even as they spoke.

“True.” She admitted, and then her gaze softened. “You’re really good with him, you know. I’m surprised you don’t have children of your own.”

He reared back, incredulous. “Have we met? Certainly not.”

“Why?” Lily pressed innocently. “You love Draco, don’t you? And you don’t need a woman to make a child, especially considering the fact that you’re a potioneer with a brilliant brain. You don’t need to love _all_ children to have one yourself.” She held up her hand to correct herself. “Not that you need to have children, mind you. It just seems like something you’d be wonderful at.”

“You’re delusional.” He scoffed, but held onto Draco a little tighter. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Legit cackled writing the part with Draco pulling Harry's hair.  
> AND SO IT BEGINS
> 
> I think people are not going to be happy with James and Lily's conversations with Remus and Severus but ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯. I am trying to keep them in character, and also. THAT TAG 'Everyone has good and bad points in this fic'. Heed it. 
> 
> And, to those who wanna come at me about Lily reading Severus the riot act; listen. Sometimes you don't like your friends spouses. And he agreed to be her friend knowing who she was married to. She's not just going to NOT mention her husband ever again. I've been in Severus's shoes and her spouse was a fucking prick, but I was her friend and he was a part of her life. 
> 
> Sly has agreed to hand out 'fuck offs'.


	6. Close

xXx

_ Remus,  _

_ I’ll get the personal business out of the way; how are you holding up? When you started writing to me about Demi-Werewolves I was a little more than concerned! From your latest letter I’m gathering you and this other man came to some sort of compromise. I also wrote to Selina, but she informs me you did already. Perhaps she will have some more first-hand insight.  _

_ I’d be remiss if I didn’t remind you that the November new moon is approaching and, well, you know that will be difficult. Do you remember your first November when we were working with the Amarok? I thought I’d have to peel that one girl off of you with an unsticking charm! She was a spirited one, wasn’t she? Helena? Harriet? You know I’m terrible with names. I digress, make sure you’re prepared. There must be a potioneer nearby that can supply you with the potions you need.  _

_ You must tell me how classes are going, are the children receptive? Do they enjoy the reading? You will have to let me know how I can modify the series so we can make it easier for teaching. It’s been a dream of mine to have my books used for classes. I expect a full report once the year is through.  _

_ Now, as for MY research... _

It was always a pleasure to hear more of Rosette’s travels now that he was no longer at her side. The coven in Egypt was just as intense and interesting as he figured they would be. He knew she was working with local aurors, but he was always worried she’d get so caught up in her work that she wouldn’t realize how dangerous it was. The last few pages read like parts of a novel, sucking him back into her life and making him crave to hear more. One day soon he would have to schedule a floo-call and speak in person.

He re-read the letter from the beginning and wiggled in his seat when she mentioned the new moon. It wasn’t that he had forgotten about it, per se, it was simply that he didn’t want to think about it. He should have warned Minerva when he was hired, but he didn’t think he had much to worry about back then. Now he couldn’t even fathom going to their ‘potioneer’ for the potions he needed to make it through November unscathed. He was far too embarrassed to explain what they were for, and even if he gave him a recipe, Severus was far too intelligent to not realize the use of it. 

Perhaps he could ask him to give up his lab for a day?

He resolved to find a way to bring it up soon, but then the weeks blurred by and suddenly it was the week before Halloween. Albus was good on his word that he had something exciting planned. He had charmed pumpkins explode in the classes at random moments, raining candies and chocolate down upon the students and faculty. Remus had no idea how Severus was holding up, but he was delighted. He had taken to spending more time in his allotted classroom for this reason. 

Halloween used to be his favourite holiday. Before Hogwarts, he would walk to his father’s store after school, and then Lyall would take him to his mother’s old neighbourhood and go trick or treating. During his time as a student there, it was bittersweet, but also fun to spend it with his friends. 

After, well… Remus hadn’t celebrated it in years. This was a nice change of pace, and gave him a sense of childish wonder again. Another thing that Albus implemented, which was completely self-serving, was the ability to send sweets to someone of your choice once a day for a small fee. He worked out a deal with Honeydukes, and they even had a small booth in the Great Hall during meal times so everyone had a chance to send something to someone else.    
  
Remus sent Severus gingered newts once, recalling one day in seventh year when he saw him with one. It was hard to catch the attendant when there weren’t so many witnesses around, but he made it work. By the end of the week, he had a small pile of chocolate on his desk, since he  _ may _ have joked that midterms were coming up and buttering up professors wouldn’t hurt their chances at a more lax test. He had plans to redistribute it later to the rest of the staff, and maybe keep a little bit for himself.

They still hadn't talked since the night in the fairy clearing, but Remus did notice that Severus was a little less prickly during staff meetings. Strangely enough it was the potions master who initiated the few conversations they had to have, but Remus never felt comfortable asking for a favor. 

The Halloween feast was spectacular, and afterwards there was a modest party; nothing too extravagant. The children were able to dance and play simple games while the professors were given the opportunity to stay and chaperone with promises of baked goods, or leave early for the night. Remus, of course, chose to remain and enjoy a chocolate lava cake, chatting with Albus and Pomona while the festivities wore on. By eleven the children were all sent back to their common rooms, full of sweets and excitement. 

Unfortunately, with Halloween came the next full moon shortly after. On November the third he was back in the shrieking shack, preparing himself for another painful night. Severus refused to stop making him wolfsbane, but had said he was taking precautions in the letter he sent to Remus. He hoped that was true; he didn’t want another bloodthirsty demi-werewolf incident. He still caught Severus looking exhausted in the week leading up to the full moon. 

November the fourth dawned cold and sleeting, which was a pleasure to walk in back to the castle when he was already sore and miserable. He bypassed the Great Hall and collapsed on the bed in his rooms, thankful that he wasn’t expected to teach on the day after a full moon. He had no idea who was assigned to teach his classes when he wasn’t able. He woke up several hours into the afternoon, hauling himself up to the headmaster’s office to ask whom he should be checking in with. 

“That would be Rubeus.” Albus informed him cheerfully. “Don’t worry, I told him to keep the classes simple.”

“I’m sure he enjoyed that.” Remus was relieved. “He really does have a knack for magical creatures. I’m surprised you didn’t offer him the position.”

“He refused it, actually.” 

“He did?” 

“He said he would need more time to get mentally prepared. I think these small chances to teach will really help his confidence.” Albus smiled softly, and took a sip of his tea. 

“You really care for your faculty.” Remus observed. “It’s nice to see.”

“Of course.” The older wizard looked surprised. “I’d like to think we have grown on you a bit since you started to work here?”

“Oh, no I didn’t mean that. It is just… I see you talking with Hagrid and Severus often and it reminds me of something familial, is all.”

Albus chuckled, but his eyes were joyous. “I just wish they’d accept that gracefully! Don’t let Severus hear you saying it; he’ll probably skitter away like a spooked cat!”

“I’m sure just seeing my face would do the trick, nevermind being able to get any words out beforehand.”

Albus tilted his head at him thoughtfully. 

"Have you considered writing to him?"

Remus blinked at the suggestion. "No, I haven't." He wasn't even sure what he would say. 

"This may be a sentimental old man sticking his nose where it doesn't belong, but perhaps it will give you a less confrontational approach than face to face?" 

"I… hadn't thought of it like that. I always talk to people in person when I can." 

"May I ask something, Remus?" Albus asked delicately.

Remus felt like this was a warning sign, but he couldn't deny the headmaster anything. "Yes?"

"Why?"

"Why… what?"

"Why is Severus so important to you? I understood you told him about the tea, and he is able to coexist in the same room as you now." 

Remus felt unprepared to answer such a complicated question. "I suppose it is because I feel I owe him."

"Is it not up to Severus if he wishes to act on that debt? He could very well take advantage of you if he wanted." 

Remus winced, remembering the One Thousand Galleons Incident. 

"But he does not." Albus continued. "Perhaps you should start to forgive yourself." 

Remus left the office feeling worse than ever before, and this was the day  _ after _ the full moon. He wanted to fix things so badly, but in the end that was only for his own comfort. He needed to come to terms with the fact that he may never get forgiveness, and so he had to work on moving on from that. 

He blew out a weary breath and turned to glance out the window at the sleet hitting the pane. He wasn't sure how to start forgiving himself for what happened. Perhaps that was why he was so desperate in the beginning. Now it had been nearly two weeks since their last real conversation when Remus told him he was sorry. Aside from work, Severus gave no indication to how he felt, and so he probably just wanted to move on with his life. 

At least he wouldn't need the potion now that he and Severus were avoiding each other. 

xXx

Severus hated this time of year. Ever since his school days he found that the time between Halloween and Yule was particularly difficult. He was restless and unable to sleep. When he did fall asleep, he would wake up in a state of semi-arousal. The dreams had died down in October, but now they were back with a vengeance. He started to drink the tea on a semi-regular basis in hopes that it would help, and he couldn’t be sure if it was or not.    
  
He considered researching his condition multiple times over the years, but he figured it had something to do with the changing of the seasons and an unfortunate piece of male anatomy. He’d taken to having a shower nearly every morning and evening; his skin hypersensitive and mind a mess. He didn’t like feeling this way; it was like going through puberty all over again. Over the years he had participated in a few sexual encounters, but he left them feeling vaguely unsatisfied and unsure what the fuss was all about. Now it was a craving that left him a little nauseated with how fiercely it affected him. 

His abilities to pick up scents were also heightened, and he found that Lupin’s scent always seemed to win out over most. He was relieved that the werewolf took his words seriously and had stayed away, which made things more bearable. Albus was worried about him, but he had no words to describe why he was so miserable. He let the old man make his own conjectures, and hoped that things would change once December came around. 

He came to the great hall early to eat, and then was one of the first to leave. His queasiness allowed him to only eat half of his normal diet, and each meal was over quickly so he could escape. On this particular day, he was walking down the hallway when he heard a student call for him. He pinched the bridge of his nose and turned to the little gremlin, unsurprised to see Abigail Rosier’s big blue eyes staring up at him. The only difference was that now she looked slightly distressed.

“Professor!” She glanced around warily and then cupped her hands around her mouth and stood up on her tip-toes to whisper something to him. He rolled his eyes but leaned down to listen. 

xXx

Although it was difficult, Remus was able to keep to himself as much as possible for a week. He couldn’t help that his eyes naturally drifted down the head table towards Severus. He blamed it on the time of year every time he noticed Severus curl his hair behind an ear to eat, or the way his mouth formed words as he spoke to Minerva. Luckily, Hagrid was a good distraction, and he was thankful when the half-giant pulled him into a conversation about his classes. 

“Thank you, Hagrid, you’ve been such a big help in keeping the creatures housed and fed.” Remus told him one lunchtime, when Hagrid relayed that he’d already fed the mooncalves for his third year class. 

“Anytime! I should be thankin’ you!” Rubeus boomed joyfully. “‘Sides, I know you’ve been busy n’ all.”

“It’s been an adjustment.” Remus admitted ruefully. “Still, I appreciate all you’ve done. Especially teaching the classes when I am ill.”

Hagrid beamed at him. 

The great hall was emptying out for afternoon classes already, and Remus was just standing up when he noticed a hufflepuff nearly tripping over her robes in a rush to get to him. 

“Hullo, there, Robin!” Hagrid greeted, jumpstarting Remus’s memory. 

“Ah, yes, Miss Andrews.” Remus recalled; she was relatively quiet in his class. A sort of daydreamer who was leery of the creatures and preferred the written portion. She was also one of the only second years who could see the Thestrals grazing out in the pasture, and would often stare at them when she should be paying attention.

“I came to get you because I know you’ll do something!” She squeaked, eyes darting over to the rest of the head table where most other teachers were absent. “Darien is in danger!”

“Lacroix?” He stared at her in surprise. 

She nodded quickly. “ One of my friends from Slytherin came and told me she overheard some of the boys in their common room. They’re planning something mean. I was going to go and try to stop them, but Darien said you’d helped him before…”

“No, of course.” Remus turned to Hagrid urgently. “Can you go get Minerva? I have the feeling some Gryffindors may be involved, too.”

“O’ course.”

Andrews led him outside to the castle grounds, her breathing panicky and short. “Oh, I don’t know where they went.” She put a hand to her heart nervously. “Darien likes to walk in the forest... Maybe there?”

“How do you know Mr. Lacroix, Miss Andrews?”

“He helps me in Defense.” She admitted sadly while they started on their way to the treeline. “I’m good at Potions, so we’ve been helping each other. Plus no one will sit with him and… Well, I thought that was really sad, so we started a, um, club of sorts.”

“You’re a second year.” He pointed out, impressed. “Are you telling me you’re tutoring someone in  _ third year _ Potions?”

“I’m better at theory than I am at practical.” She giggled, self-deprecating. “Professor Snape yells at me all the time because I drop things.”

“I can imagine that’s quite upsetting.”

“Oh! Professor Snape is brilliant, don’t get me wrong! I’m privileged to learn from him!” She was quick to correct herself, and then she perked up. “Look! There he is!”

Unfortunately, there was also a gathering of students there as well, surrounding what appeared to be a core group that had their wands out and pointed at Lacroix. He was standing by himself, and they were able to hear some of the words he was yelling at them as they approached. 

“You’re the pathetic ones! You think it’s alright to gang up on someone just because you don’t like them!”

“Hogwarts would be better without losers like  _ you _ around.” Cajoled one of the Gryffindors. “You’re a disgrace, you shouldn’t have been let in. Such a coward! You think your precious professor is going to save you?”

“I’m not a coward!”

“And he’s gay.” Laughed one of the Gryffindor’s meanly. “They should throw you out of the dormitories. Sneaking looks at your classmates, I bet!” 

“There’s nothing wrong with being gay!”

“It’s creepy. Just as creepy as having a crush on someone like Professor Snape!” Called a female voice from the crowd. 

“ _ Procella _ !”

Robin had her wand out and sent the wind spell towards the crowd to scatter them, except the viciousness of her magic blew several of them right over and on top of each other. 

“Andrews!” Remus admonished her. 

“I had to stop them!” She stamped her foot like a child. 

Remus gave her a stern look. “I will deal with you drawing your wand on other students later. Now.” He turned to the gathering. “What is this about? I thought you learned your lesson last time I gave you detention. Now it’s straight to the headmasters office with all of you. Points will be removed from Gryffindor, Slytherin, and I see some Ravenclaws here.”

“Andrews, did I just see you use a spell on  _ other  _ students?” Severus’s voice drawled dangerously from behind them. 

Remus turned around and his breath caught in his throat. This close the draw was intense, and he quickly shook his head to try and clear it from the haze. He put as much space between them as possible, pretending that he was just stopping the other students from leaving. This was important, he couldn’t be distracted, and especially considering he knew that Snape was  _ not _ interested. 

‘ _ Stop it. _ ’ Remus chastised himself.

One of the boys from Gryffindor panicked and thought that casting a spell on the teachers was an intelligent idea to try and get away. He brandished his wand and started to cast, but someone else was quicker. 

“ _ Immobulus _ !”

“ _ ROSIER. _ ” Snape thundered, glaring into the thicket of the trees. 

Abigail Rosier popped her blond head out of one of the bushes and waved. “Hi, Robin!”

Andrews waved back brightly. 

“I found Professor Snape!” Abigail pointed out said teacher proudly to her friend.

“I got Professor Lupin.” Andrews pointed her thumb over at the other adult. “I knew  _ he’d _ do something.” 

“What is going on over here?” 

Remus looked over his shoulder and felt relief seeing not only Minerva, but Albus and Rubeus jogging towards them. Rosier picked her way from the bushes and pulled Lacroix away from the bullies, giving the ringleaders a triumphant haughty look. She shoved her way past the gathered students, clearing a path for herself and the Ravenclaw. 

“ _ Rosier _ .” Snape called her out warningly. 

The other adults finally reached hearing distance, so Remus turned to explain things. 

“Headmaster!” Andrews cut in immediately, stepping forward. “They were going to petrify him and drag him to the dark forest! AND they were being homophobic!” She pointed to the group of five boys.

“Were they?” Albus smiled coldly at the three Slytherin and two Gryffindor. “Well, I’m sure we have much to talk about. Gentlemen? Come along.”

“Hufflepuff Canary!” Snarled one of the Gryffindors as he walked by. 

“Gryffindor Swine.” She called back nastily. 

“ _ Andrews _ .” Remus admonished. 

“Well.” Minerva’s face was pinched together in clear disgust. “This is a horrible display of house unity. We do not tolerate bullying in our school!” She addressed the students at large.

Remus couldn’t help but search out Severus’s eyes, and they both snorted softly in derision. For one moment, the two of them were firmly on the same page, and that connection made Remus smile. Minerva tossed a warning look their way, knowing exactly what the two of them were thinking about. She then sent the others dispersing back to their classes, informing them that an announcement would be made and letters sent to their parents. 

“Rosier, Lacroix, Andrews.” Snape drew the three of them off to the side and crossed his arms, glaring down his nose at them. 

“Sorry, Professor.” Andrews said immediately. 

“Detention, both of you.” He nodded to Andrews and Rosier. “For using spells on other students.”

“But I was just protecting you!” Rosier spoke up in defense immediately. 

Severus raised a brow at her, unamused. “Do I  _ look  _ like I need protection, Miss Rosier?”

Rosier shuffled her feet and shrugged one shoulder. “Sometimes? I mean I often think you could do with a nice hug.” She nodded emphatically. 

Andrews and Lacroix immediately reached to slap a hand over her mouth simultaneously. It became a jumbled mess of hands and Abigail Rosier flailing back as the combined force of her friends struck her. Remus tried his best, he really did, but he had to turn away to hide his amusement, covering his mouth as peals of laughter threatened to spill out. 

“And where, pray tell, did two second years learn spells that are for third year?” Severus turned his sharp gaze onto Lacroix. “Did you contribute to this, Lacroix? I do recall Defense is one of your stronger subjects.”

Lacroix was staring at his shoes, silent. 

“Detention for you as well.”

“But Professor!” Rosier cut in. “Didn’t you tell us you were able to do spells _ far beyond your years _ when  _ you  _ were a student?”

Remus cleared his throat, trying to regain some composure. “Run along, and be happy we didn’t take any house points.”

“It’s a valid question, though!” Rosier whined as her friends dragged her away.

Remus shook his head in amusement and followed them at a more sedate pace. A large part of him wanted to turn to Severus and discuss what had just happened, but he didn’t want to lose his streak of keeping his words (and potentially hands) to himself. 

At least they were outside where some of the scent could disperse, being inside in confined quarters would be dangerous.

xXx

Severus didn’t know why he thought going to Lupin’s office was a brilliant move, especially considering the fact that he was still on edge every time they were within twenty feet of one another. It was the night of the new moon and Remus had been suspiciously absent today except to teach his classes. He told himself it was simply that he had to discuss the detention situation with him, as logically, they couldn’t have the three well-meaning troublemakers serve it with their harassers. For that reason, he figured the lesser of all evils would be to give them to Lupin for some free Magical Creature labour. 

He shuddered when he entered the wing where Lupin’s class and rooms were situated. His scent permeated the whole area, and it was only getting stronger. He squared his shoulders and pushed through, trying to breathe through his mouth and concentrate on the task at hand. He noticed that the classroom door was ajar, and stepped inside, closing it behind him so that no students could overhear them. At the far end of the class was another door where a storage room had been converted into a small office. 

“Lup-”

Remus swung the door open abruptly, looking harried with his eyes wide open and mouth agape. “Severus?” He sounded breathless, and his hand was clenched hard on the door frame. 

“We need to…” Severus started to feel very warm, and for some reason his own lungs felt constricted. “Detention.” He cleared his throat, trying to ignore the fact that it suddenly felt like he was being subjected to some sort of heady, disorienting, perfume. “The students should serve it with you.”

Remus closed his eyes and took a half step back. “Is that… all you needed?” 

“I…” He went to say something, but he couldn’t quite remember what it was. His eyes focused on the small drop of sweat that was pooling at Lupin’s temple, and he had the most ridiculous urge to lick it away. Images flashed before him, reminding him of the moments that plagued his unconscious mind. His whole body flushed and he stepped back. Whatever this was, his instincts were at war with each other, and he knew he shouldn’t be listening to the ones that were telling him to go to Remus. 

“You need to leave.”

Severus lifted his hand to his cheek, feeling it burn like a brand. The sound of Remus’s rough voice made something rush through him, starting from his stomach and spanning outwards. “What is happening?”

“It’s the Lunardraw.” The bloody werewolf explained exactly nothing with those words. “It’s my fault.” He still wasn’t looking at him, eyes squeezed shut and hands created fractures in the doorframe. 

“You’re making this happen?” Severus didn’t think that was possible. It felt a lot like how he’d been feeling every year in November for almost a decade, except now it was condensed down into a potent pinprick. 

“Please go.” Remus pleaded, voice getting rougher. 

“I deserve answers.” Severus sounded frustrated to his own ears. “What  _ is  _ this?”

Remus straightened his spine and sucked in a quick breath before he started to move. He grabbed Severus’s hand, only pausing for the split second when the burst of sensation made them both shudder. He brought him over to the door and opened it, turning away from him abruptly and covering his mouth. 

“You don’t want this.” He sounded like he wasn’t talking to Severus at all, which was as confusing as it was annoying. 

Severus would realize later that he was trying to antagonize him, but all he could think about was the fact that Lupin wasn’t looking at him. He was displeased with that little act, and so he grabbed Remus’s shoulder to turn him around and demand he just tell him what was wrong with them. 

He hit the wall, breath knocked from his lungs, and brain completely stunned. Remus was boxing him in with his hands pressed on either side of his head, spine bowed in tension. He was looking at him with golden eyes that were nearly drowned out with dilated pupils, and the metaphorical bulb at long last flickered to life. Severus realized far too late that this was dangerous, and that there was a very big part of him that wanted to snap Lupin’s remaining thread of self-restraint. 

“Unless you want me to do something you’ll regret tomorrow. Get. Out.”

Then with his whole body shaking, Remus lowered the arm that was closest to the door. 

Severus only hesitated a second, hands reaching up without his permission before he snapped back to reality. He took the exit granted to him and closed the door shut behind him for good measure. The brisk walk back to his rooms made him vibrate in anxious energy, hand over his mouth as he realized how close that had come to something they couldn’t retract. Every step away made his insides ache; at first he thought it was disgust, but then he knew otherwise. 

It was like that second dream in the aconite clearing. He needed something that he couldn’t do himself, and he felt shame curl low in his stomach. He didn’t want it like this, but he couldn’t focus on anything but releasing the pleasure that was driving him insane. Sweat clung to every inch of skin, and he quickly stripped everything off and went into his shower, turning the water onto cool. The shock of the temperature only calmed him for a second, but it wouldn’t go away.

He tried to stroke himself to completion, but the ache inside was too strong, and he couldn’t seem to come. Finally he gave in and slid a finger inside, breath punched out of him at the intensity of the sensation. He cautiously worked it in and out, head tilting back onto the tiled wall as the sound of his whimper was drowned out by the water spray. He grabbed more soap for lubrication and then he shoved two of them back inside to the second knuckle too quickly. His mind exploded with overstimulating pain-satisfaction. He couldn’t move as his whole body shook, muscles clamping down on his fingers to warn him not to try to move until his insides adjusted to the intrusion.

Eventually he slumped a little further into the tiled shower wall and started to move his wrist again. It was almost pathetic how quickly the addition of something thrusting inside made him crest over the edge. 

“Fuck.” He whispered. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Three things: 
> 
> One, the students make this fic for me, and you will be seeing more of them. 
> 
> Two, Remus's self control is astounding, but he's also a dumb idiot for not preparing correctly. 
> 
> Three and most important: I won't be posting for a bit. I normally try to do every four to five days since I already have so much of the story writen. This is a very hard time of year for me, and I will probably end up posting sometime next week once a certain anniversary is over. Don't worry, I'm not abandoning the fic at all and I have up till chapter 12 completed, but I just need a moment.


	7. Talk You Down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who was patient with my update. 
> 
> A few years ago I lost the most important person in my life. She was the foundation of my life, and I miss her every day. You'll probably notice that a lot of my work has a trend with family, death, and mental illness, since these are all things I've struggled with. For all those of you who have lost someone like I have: please know, all you have to do is survive and let their love within you heal the rest. They are the gold in the cracks, and their love blooms from within you. 
> 
> That being said, I will now direct your attention to my actual author's note for this chapter, which is a complete one eighty:
> 
> Yeah, I did that, and I regret nothing. 
> 
> Legit though kids, consent is very very important and I would be remiss not to mention that. Back in my day-
> 
> Someone from a distance: You’re not that old!
> 
> Anyways, sexual education sucked ass and I had to learn most of my sexual education through thorough research into sexual orientation and sexuality. Unfortunately, I learned a lot of shit through fanfiction that I wouldn’t realize was critical to a Baby!Ace like myself until much later. So to recap: Being in an altered state of mind and having sex is a no go especially without consent beforehand. The point of that was literally to a) cocktease the shit out of you guys because I enjoy tormenting my readers and b) proving that they are compatible, and it’s not just one sided.
> 
> Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.

xXx

"I'm sorry, the SDS?"

Remus Lupin blinked at the three students sitting in front of him. It was seven o'clock on a school evening, and they were all currently occupying the Defence classroom since the Magical Creatures class was still being cleaned up from that day's lesson with doxies. Robin Andrews, Abigail Rosier, and Darien Lacroix seemed like the most unlikely combination. Yet the three of them were united by one common goal: they all thought Severus Snape should be respected and protected. 

He had no idea why considering the fact that Andrews was yelled at once a week, Lacroix was mediocre in his subject at best, and Rosier didn't take him seriously at all. Yet they bonded when Lacroix heard Andrews telling off some first years who insulted Snape's nose. 

Quite frankly, he felt like he had been transported into some sort of bizarre upside down world, wondering if this was how kids these days coped with life.

"Yes. The Snape Defense Squad." Rosier announced proudly. 

"And the premise of this, ah, 'squad' is to…?"

"Protect Professor Snape." They all chorused with varying levels of enthusiasm. 

"And this is how you two learned year three spells and Lacroix is improving at Potions?"

They all nodded. 

"We wanted to make it an official club, but decided against it." Andrews announced. 

"Really we just help each other with homework." Lacroix was the only one who had the forethought to sound embarrassed. "Robin is good at Potions, I'm good at Defense, and Abigail is good at Transfigurations."

Remus opened and closed his mouth, thinking of so many things he could say in that moment. He scratched at his cheek idly and then remembered that they were there for a reason and went totally off track. "Well the three of you are here for detention."

"I don't really know why Darien is here since he didn't do anything wrong technically." Rosier shrugged. "Professor Snape talks all the time about how he was learning spells beyond his years."

"Yes, he definitely did." Remus smiled awkwardly for many reasons. 

"Were you in Hogwarts when he was, Professor Lupin?"

"Yes I was, now as I was saying…"

“Oh! Was he just as clever?” Rosier asked. 

“Devastatingly so.” Remus couldn't help but admit. 

"I bet he didn't have any problems dropping things accidentally into his cauldron." Andrews groaned, head thunking forward onto the table. 

Not for the first time in his life, Remus realized he was completely out of his depth. He tried to keep them onto the task at hand, which was discussing the behaviour that got them there, but the three of them were more eager to learn about Snape's school days. The sad part was that he actually found their hero worship to be rather sweet. He worried at first that it had verged into inappropriate territories, especially since he'd be the last person to tell them off for it. Instead, Andrews wanted to become a potions master and desired his approval, Lacroix liked that he told his bullies off, and Rosier simply kept saying she thought he needed more happiness in his life. Really, he wasn't sure if he should deter them; regardless of the reason they seemed to be quite good friends now. 

"...And so we do not attack other students." Remus eventually managed to wrangle them back around full circle. It took him a half an hour but he got there. 

Rosier raised her hand as if in class. 

He knew he would regret asking. "Yes, Rosier?"

"What about in self defense?"

"If someone attacks you first and it is to do harm, then yes, no one would fault you for protecting yourself." He instructed warily. 

She raised her hand again. 

"... Yes?"

"What if they can't  _ prove _ it was self defense?"

Remus sighed.

The detention crew really was a decent distraction from the internal conflict happening in Remus’s mind. He had kept himself very scarce, especially in the wake of his actions on the new moon. The peak of the Lunardraw was over, and he could feel it receding back into its natural dormant state. He just didn't know how he would ever be able to look Severus in the eyes ever again. He had acted like, well, an animal. Severus hadn't had control over his instincts in the beginning, but Remus had foolishly assumed he could just avoid his, whilst knowing better. He kept making these blunders when it came to Severus, and he couldn't figure out why. Were they really so doomed to never reconcile?

He redirected his efforts on keeping the SDS out of trouble. He has no concerns about Andrews; she became a bit of a hero overnight in Hufflepuff House. Meanwhile Rosier defended herself nonchalantly. He overheard her telling the other Slytherin girls that she didn’t want anyone to ‘besmirch the good name of Slytherin’, and he’s pretty sure she got that tidbit from Severus. 

The third years knew that Remus wouldn't tolerate any of their bullying, and he was very surprised to see one of the Gryffindor boys stay behind one class to apologize to Lacroix. The boy's last name was Donegan and his mother's howlers had been particularly vicious. Not only did she yell, but the howler also caught her sobs of anguish. She bemoaned that she didn't raise a cruel son and she knew this hurtful little boy wasn't who he really was. 

Needless to say, the SDS now completed their quota of one from each house, and Donegan and Lacroix became fast friends. He wondered if he would be seeing the four of them in detention sometime soon. 

XxX 

_ Dear Fellow Demi-Werewolf, _

_ I hope you don't mind my writing to you. Remus may not have mentioned your name, but I could only see one other staff member on file at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry who would fit the criteria. I know this seems kind of like an invasion of privacy, but I wanted to give you the chance to talk to someone else who understands. My name is Selina Aubrey, and I am a herbalist in my hometown.  _

_ First and foremost, have you received the tea yet? I promise you that it really does help. I have gone into many a rage and it's the only thing that calms it down. Thankfully there's only one werewolf over there that's making your instincts go haywire; I had a whole pack move in. You can imagine how well that turned out, but I guess in the end it caught Rosette and Remus’s attention and they were able to work something out for me.  _

_ Speaking of Remus, just avoid him this new moon. He will be grouchy. It's what happens with the Lunardraw. You'll have it too, but it won't be as bad. You probably didn't notice before now, but there will be one lunar cycle where the urge to 'mate' is a bit more potent, and reaches its peak on the new moon. Don't worry, it barely affects you seriously unless there's someone nearby with the same Lunardraw, AND is sexually compatible to you. The odds of that with the two of you are slim, but just in case see below for a potion you can brew to help suppress it. Mine is in March, which is apparently annoyingly common, but the potion makes it so we are essentially immune. Kind of like a birth control, when you think of it.  _

_ Don't forget to stay away from wolfsbane!  _

_ Selina  _

_ P.S. Please write back to me with any questions you may have. I would be happy to answer them considering and it would have made my life much easier if I had someone to ask these things to.  _

  
  


Severus put down the letter on his desk and had the sudden urge to release a frustrated growl. Although some would consider this Selina well meaning, he didn't appreciate her sticking her nose into his business, even if she did give him pertinent information. Lupin couldn't keep his big trap shut, and now not one but two people were aware of his demi-werewolf status. He leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers, contemplating his options and the revelations this woman provided. 

First and foremost, the 'slim' chance of the two of them being compatible and having the same Lunardraw was clearly a joke of the universe. He had many follow up inquiries, but he at least knew to keep mum when it came to someone else's personal matters. He didn't want to scrutinize that night too closely, because then he would have to acknowledge that there was something more than just tolerance at play. Clearly Lupin was affected more by the Lunardraw, but that did not mean Severus was immune enough to think clearly. 

He immediately set to dismantling the formula for the suppressant. Although he knew the worst was over, he drank it back in two quick gulps. The ingredients were safe for him to ingest on their own, and so he felt safe testing it. Immediately the jittery nerves died down, and it wasn't until they were gone that he realized how agitated he was. He stared at the cauldron warily, and then poured another dose. 

"Vanta." 

"Yes, Mr. Snape, sir." Vanta appeared with a muted pop, her darker skin and charcoal-tinted pillowcase making her blend into the darkness of the dungeon walls. 

"Please deliver this to Lupin's desk."

"Of course." 

She took the proffered goblet and disappeared. 

He sat down at his desk and stared at the letter once more. Did he dare write her back? Could he be certain that she wouldn’t immediately run to Lupin and tell him everything they discussed? He had very little contacts he would share such personal issues with, regardless of how many people in his life actively attempted to weasel their way in. He would probably end up with an apoplectic stroke if he tried to discuss this with Albus, and although he had a soft spot for Lily, he could never quite trust the woman who left him behind for his tormentor. 

No, he only had one option, and he already knew the conversation would be highly uncomfortable. 

xXx

Narcissa narrowed her eyes at the top of her tea thoughtfully. The silenced lapsed into uncomfortable territory while Severus drank his tea and wished that Draco were awake so he could at least pretend to be occupied by something. 

"You certainly omitted some information during the last time we spoke." She said at last, delicately putting her cup down. "You told me that this 'tea' was helping."

"It was."

"It clearly was not." She retorted flatly. "You no longer see him as a threat, but as a potential mate."

Severus blanched and then coloured at such straightforward and borderline vulgar speech from her, "excuse me?" His voice was strangled. 

"Fine. This 'wolf' part of you." If she were the type she definitely would have rolled her eyes, but the action was beneath her. "You have had no problems rejecting potential suitors before now. Why is this one so different?" 

"He is not a 'suitor'." Severus snapped hotly. "He is a hindrance that I wish to be rid of."

"As much as I wish I could plead such ignorance…" Narcissa sighed. "... I know you wouldn't be here if you weren't more conflicted with this 'bothersome coworker'." 

He regretted ever thinking that talking about this would somehow benefit him. Clearly the choice was made in a fit of madness, probably passed onto him via close proximity with Albus. Instead of listening to his woes and agreeing with him, Narcissa drew a conclusion that seemed completely counterintuitive.

"No status." She carried on and pointed out with a disapproving little frown. "Is he at least workable? Good connections? Half-Blood? What is his mother's maiden name?"

He stared at her, horrified that she was considering Remus Lupin in this way. It implied that she was looking for some sort of compromise to accept him as a part of Severus's life. Did she not just spend the last ten minutes listening to him complain about said werewolf? Why did it seem as though she was making plans?

"You don't know, clearly." She took his silence as ignorance. "I will have someone look into him discreetly. We won't break this to Lucius until we have some form of defence. He won't settle for something as arbitrary as 'lust'. I'll work on it and get back to you, until then at least sleep with the man. It would clearly do you both some good to release this festering tension." 

He was never going to her for advice ever again. 

"I will absolutely  _ not _ ." He scoffed at her, equal parts flabbergasted and humiliated. 

"Is this due to your pride? I have no doubts you could do better, but since he seems to be the only one you are actually interested in, I am lowering my standards. Please appreciate that, darling."

"I have been interested in other people." He hissed through gritted teeth.

"Name one." 

"I escorted your acquaintance to a formal dinner twice in a row."

"I can see how incredibly special that was for you, especially since you don't even care to use her  _ name _ ." Narcissa threw him an impatient look. "Annabelle Carmine, well versed in music with the 'voice of a siren', studied magical music theory, and fifth generation heiress to a wealthy pureblood family, but no, he remembers he went to dinner with her two times when it was, in fact, three." Narcissa huffed. "She was  _ perfect _ , and you want a scruffy Care of Magical Creatures Professor with no money and no status. You have no idea how difficult you are. Honestly…" 

"When  _ exactly _ did I say I  _ want _ Remus Lupin?" 

"Severus, I have known you far too long to indulge in this silly song and dance you insist upon." She waved him off dismissively, her mind was already working out various scenarios and calculations. She took another sip of her tea and mulled it over. "Perhaps I should write to him directly and ask for his lineage."

"Please.  _ Do. Not _ ."

xXx

James picked up one of the little sets of clothing and scrutinized it, holding it just out of Harry’s reach so he couldn’t rip off the tag like the last time he held it too close. “I just don’t understand it, Moony.” James groused, eventually throwing one of them into their cart and carrying on down the aisle. It was the first week of December, and the hols shopping crowds were starting to descend upon the stores in droves, unfortunately, Remus and James were among them. “They are one eighth the material, why are baby clothes so expensive?”

“I don’t understand why you’re so worried.” Remus replied good naturedly. “You have the money.”

“Yeah, but it’s a pain in the arse to get galleons transferred over, and muggle clothing stores have way more to choose from. Plus Lily reamed me out the last time she saw the receipt.” 

“Shh.” Remus tsked at him quietly, glancing around at the baby store for any eavesdroppers. So far the only ones that noticed them at all were the two ladies on the other side of the store, one of them heavily pregnant. Remus wasn’t sure if they were eyeing up James, appreciating his ‘dadness’ or if they were a couple and were assuming Remus and James were as well. The pregnant one kept on beaming over at them to the point that her companion eventually dragged her over to the wall where she wouldn’t have them in her line of sight. 

One thing that Remus noticed with his childhood friend was the fact that he seemed relatively uncaring over women watching him now. The old James from Hogwarts would have played up the attention with a roguish grin and wink. Instead, the married man was too busy contemplating teal versus seafoam, and rocking back on the soles of his feet to keep Harry in constant movement. There was no shortage of interested stares, either, since most women were instantly intrigued by a young man with a baby. 

“What do you think?” He held up the beige outfit with brown bears and the striped outfit with little boats. 

“I am more partial to the beige.” Remus shrugged a shoulder and then looked pointedly down at his own clothing, which, of course, was browns and reds. 

“You are so boring.” James informed him with a snort, but threw it in anyways. 

“Whatever will you do if your child isn’t as flashy as you are?” Remus hummed, and then lifted his gaze to the door when the bell chimed. It was a habit of his, always assessing those who entered and exited. He wondered when the anxious habit started. 

The mother who came in was strawberry blonde, her hair pulled up into a messy ponytail as she lugged her toddler into the store. He was chattering away animatedly, rocking back and forth and pointing at things immediately. Remus was reminded of the baby he saw Severus with all those months ago, and his mood instantly soured. Perhaps it was the little hat, or the pale skin, or even the sharp dark blue outfit, but anything that reminded him of his coworker and his  _ family _ instantly made him feel guilty. 

“D’you reckon you want kids?” James asked suddenly, pulling his attention back to his friend. 

“Sorry?”

“Kids. Rugrats. Infants.” He gestured around the store. “I mean, you’re the only friend I have who will willingly come baby shopping with me, and you always get this look on your face…” He paused and reassessed Remus. “I mean unless that’s the ‘Snape’ look again. Is it the Snape look again?”

Remus blinked at him. “The ‘Snape’ look?” 

“You know, the ‘I’ve done something to Snape’ look, Moony. You get this look on your face like he’s kicked your puppy, or kicked you, and you’re the puppy.” He threw a bag of nappies in without sparing it anything but a cursory glance. “It’s just as tortured looking as the ‘children are too precious’ look.”

“How did we go from talking about children to talking about Severus?” Remus wondered aloud.

“Honestly, most conversations with you these days eventually circle back around to Snape, so I’ve leaned into it.”

“I am not that bad.” Remus defended himself, but he sounded doubtful to his own words. He was trying to remember if they’d even discussed Severus the last few times they saw one another. 

“Well, whatever it is, it can’t be that terrible. You aren’t at the ‘escaping from the UK’ level yet.” 

“You are never going to let that go, are you?”

“Nah, I need something to tease you with.” James nudged him in the shoulder. Their conversation was put on hold while James paid for his purchases, the cashier predictably cooing over Harry and asking a million and one questions that James proudly answered. 

They wandered back into wizarding England and James corralled Remus in helping him look for a gift for Lily for Christmas. 

“Anyways.” James tucked Harry’s hat down over his little ears a little more snugly. “Children, yay or nay?”

“I am not entirely sure it matters.” Remus admitted self-deprecatingly. “Most people don’t want a spouse who is a werewolf, and I wouldn’t be able to raise a child on my own.”

“You have your mum, she’d help you.” James pointed out. 

“I also wouldn’t be able to keep them with me at Hogwarts.”

“So you’re planning to stay?”

“I… Well, if they’ll have me.”

“Even with Snape there?”

“He isn’t planning on staying past this year.” Remus relayed quietly. 

“Whatever will you occupy your spare time with?” James muttered under his breath jokingly.

“I really am  _ not _ that bad. I’ve tried to leave him be.” Remus insisted. 

“Uh huh.” James gave him a disbelieving eyebrow raise. 

“I, oh-” Remus stared over James’s shoulder, eyes fixed on another woman with her baby, except this time it actually  _ was _ the child he recognized. “Is that…?”

James followed his gaze and snorted, putting his hand protectively to Harry’s hat-covered head. “Well, well, if it isn’t the little hair-pulling bully.”

“I, sorry, what?” Remus came back to himself, confused at the comment. 

“That’s Narcissa Malfoy, isn’t it?” James recognized. “Which makes that little tyke Draco.”

“Wait, Draco?” Remus was instantly on high alert. “Why does Narcissa Malfoy have Draco?”

“Uh,” James turned back to him, perplexed. “Because he’s Draco  _ Malfoy _ ? You know, her son?” 

“Draco is a Malfoy?” Remus looked completely shocked by this piece of news. 

“I mean, whose child did you think-? Oh. OH. You didn’t know?” James looked practically gleeful to be the one to explain this. “Snape is his  _ god _ father, not his father. Seriously, Moony, did you think Snape had a  _ baby _ ?” 

“Mr. Potter, Mr. Lupin.”

The two of them jumped and turned around to see an elegant Narcissa Malfoy with Draco in her arms. The little blonde boy was eyeing Harry critically, as if he wasn’t sure if this was the same child he’d met before. Harry, meanwhile, was leaning his head back to stare at the other baby, kicking his legs in either agitation or excitement. James was looking between Narcissa and Remus, unsure exactly what this conversation was about to entail. 

“Ah, Ms. Malfoy.” James recovered first between the two of them. “It’s, er, nice to see you again?” 

Draco suddenly lunged forward with both arms outstretched, as if expecting that James would catch him. Remus was faster, and had his arms around Draco’s middle despite the fact that Narcissa was an old hand at her son’s abrupt tendencies and yanked him back into her arms before he could get very far. Remus stepped back as if scalded, feeling ridiculous that he’d jumped for another person’s baby. 

“Good reflexes.” Narcissa smiled at him disarmingly. 

“My apologies.” Remus blurted quickly, still looking a little shell shocked. 

“It’s quite alright. Draco and Harry have met before, haven’t they?” Narcissa turned to James. 

“Yes.” James covered Harry’s head a little more securely. 

“Draco has a habit of grabbing onto things.” Narcissa explained. “Lucius says he’ll make a good Seeker.”

James looked like he very badly wanted to say something else, so Remus cut in here. “Are you out holiday shopping?” 

“Indeed. I was going to pick Lucius up a new quill, but I found something else instead.” She looked Remus up and down as she spoke airily, as if sizing him up. “You have good bone structure.” She complimented apropos of nothing.

“I…”

“I have been doing a bit of genealogy lately in my spare time.” Narcissa continued. “Your grandmother’s maiden name was Altalune, wasn’t it?”

“Yes?” Remus gave her an alarmed look. 

“You and I have an acquaintance in common, then.” She informed him kindly. “Your great-aunt helped my second-cousin, the Gaunts?”

Remus wasn’t sure what was happening, but he felt as though Narcissa was leading him to play along, and he was always accommodating to a fault. “Yes, my Great-Aunt Mildred.” He quickly combed his mind for any information he could recall. “She was an auror informant.”

“Exactly.” She looked pleased. “Mildred Altalune helped Merope Gaunt from a very  _ unfortunate _ situation.” 

“You’re practically family.” James sarcastically interjected, looking more and more displeased. 

“In a sense.” Narcissa nodded to him graciously. “Well, gentleman, good day.”

James waited until she was out of sight before he rounded on Remus. “What have you done?”

Remus was completely out of his depth. “I’m not sure what just happened, to be honest.”

“Pure-bloods only care about one thing.” James looked annoyed. “And that is connections. Why does Narcissa Malfoy care about-” He cut himself off and his jaw dropped. “You shagged Snape, didn’t you?”

“What?!” Remus gaped at him, quickly drawing his wand out and casting a silencing spell. “What are you on about?”

“Lily is going to kill me.” James muttered. “I was supposed to have that talk with you ages ago.” 

“What just happened?!” Remus demanded. “Why do you  _ think  _ that?”

“You’re boning Snape... seriously, Moony?” James went on, clearly disgruntled by the news.

“I am not-” He cut himself off and refused to actually refer to Severus that way. “I cannot believe you just said ‘bone’.” 

“Sorry, did you fuck him yet, or did he fuck you? Was there some form of fuckery involved?”

“You have a  _ child _ .”

“He’s four months, he doesn’t understand anything.” James waved off his concern. “Now, you’re telling me you haven’t yet?”

“‘Yet’?” Remus parroted, voice slightly strangled. “He won’t even come near me! Why do you think he’d…?”

“Did you not just see that?!” James gestured to where Narcissa was just standing. “She is plotting something, and what do you have in common? Snape. She is sizing you up like a prized Abraxan, for Merlin’s sake.”

“If Severus is plotting anything it is to stay far, far, away from me.” Remus informed him, looking away uncomfortably. 

“Because you did something, didn’t you?” James called him out. 

Remus pursed his lips. “I didn’t mean to-”

James rubbed his face in agitation and took a moment to recollect himself. “Okay, what did you do?”

Remus coloured and shrunk back in distress. “I don’t think I want to discuss this here.”

“That bad, huh?” James winced. “Well come on, let’s head home. Merlin knows I’ll need something stronger than tea to hear this…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally started updating chapter titles, which are songs that remind me of Snupin! 
> 
> Also. Narcissa. She is just //blows kiss// I love her in this.


End file.
